Rising Together
by Outcast001
Summary: When Alexandra wakes up where she really shouldn't be, and then later realizes just where she is, this teenager will do what everyone else in her situation would do. Screw things up and, hopefully, give a better life for those she considers Nakama.
1. Arrival

**Hello folks! This is my OC's adventure in the world of One Piece. This is in collaboration with Ang3l S0ng's own fanfiction Falling Apart. It is basically how my character ended up in One Piece and her own adventures there before (And after) she meets Asa. Hope you enjoy!**

**I own nothing, except my OC. Angels character is her own, and I hope I portray her right when I (Eventually) get to that part!**

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'_That is not my ceiling'_ was my first thought as I awoke to the land of the living. The ceiling was a summer-sky blue, and considering I remember my ceiling being white… well, you can see how this would be considered strange, at least to me. I tried to turn my head, but a pain rippled up and down my spine, reawakening nerves that had apparently been numb until now. The rest of my body was quick to join in reminding my brain just how much pain I was in.

"Ow…" I croaked, the sound jerked someone awake. They had been sitting in a chair, and the movement was so sudden they fell out and landed with a loud 'thump'. They were quick to get up though, and looked at me in amazement.

"You're… you're alive" the man breathed, as though it was a miracle. Considering how much pain I'm in, it just might be. I grinned at the man, taking in his appearance; he was a matured man, about forty years old with dark brown hair that was beginning to grey at the root. He had fuzz around his jaw, hinting that he hadn't shaved for a few days, and his warm green eyes were wide with amazement.

"Yep" I croaked again, coughing at the dryness of my throat. How long had I been out? I think the man could read my mind because, as he poured me a drink of water from the jug on the bedside table, he began to explain things. Helping me drink since I couldn't move, you know, being half dead and all.

"You've been out for nearly four days; found you buried six feet under during a landslide. In the middle of a storm no less! We brought you in, but everyone thought you wouldn't make it" he sighed and ran a hand through his hair "I should go tell my wife you're awake, but be warned, she can be a bit much sometimes" he added before standing and leaving the room. I blinked once, twice, thrice, and then I remembered what had happened. Death had sent me here, to do what I couldn't be sure exactly, but I was pretty much just meant to meddle with things. Live.

"Living wills have to wait, me-thinks" I muttered, wondering if Death could hear me. Lord knows I wouldn't be going anywhere soon, not in this condition at least. But what will I even do? How will I even explain this? Was I inland, or was this the coast? My thoughts were cut short as a woman with long blonde hair that was kept in a tight braid swept into the room. Her blue eyes narrowed on me and I suddenly felt like a child about to get scolded for playing in the dirt while wearing brand new clothes.

"Before I get ahead of myself, are you alright dear?" she asked, I nodded slowly, wincing when pain shot through my head and back at the motion. "Apparently not, what were you thinking? Running around in a storm like that, just look at you! You could have died!"

"I'm pretty sure I did, at one point" I responded, the woman paused and looked at me in surprise. After a few tense moments I couldn't keep my seldom expression together and grinned at her. She huffed irritably before turning on her heel and poking at her, notably taller, husbands' chest.

"You make sure she doesn't leave her bed, I'll make her something hot to eat, the doctor should be coming by soon…" she went on a bit more before retreating back the way she came, which I assume would be the kitchen. The man sighed, and returned to his original seat.

"So…" I started slowly "where am I?"

The man gave me a level look before sighing "You're in Shore Town, creative name huh?" he joked, before running a hand through his hair again "We found you unconscious on the beach, just under the cliff, during the storm but couldn't reach you when the top soil came loose and toppled on top of you. God knows how you survived"

'_No, the Grimm Reaper does, though'_ I inwardly grinned, but kept my attention on the man –whose name I have yet to learn- as he continued to speak.

"We dug you out, and since I lived closest to the cliff you were placed here, doctor said your chances were slim, and of you not ending up a cripple were slimmer. Poor Maria was terrified for you, barely left your side and tended to you like the daughter she never had" he smiled and I found myself copying him.

"Thank you, for saving my life" I finally managed to say, my throat was beginning to dry again.

"No problem. Names Boris, and you?"

"Alexandra"

"Nice to meet you"

"Likewise"

"…"

"Tell me about Shore Town, where is it exactly?" and like that, the silence was filled, replaced by a gentle voice as he talked about his home, and everyone in it. Shore Town was on a large island, it was self-suppliant in fruit and fish, but traded with the surrounding islands for other things such as clothing and building materials. The surrounding towns were Oakridge and Driftwood Harbour. Oakridge tended the trees and the Harbour handled trade, while Shore Town brought in fish and clams –since the place was known for their pearls as well- and they all helped out amongst each other. The islands, which were named for what they were rich in –Fruit Island, Fisherman Island and other uncreative names that were still charming- and all these islands, were located in the West Blue, and it was storm season to boot.

"However, despite the fact that it's storm season, there are several luxury cruise ships that tour the islands. I suspect you were on one of those and were lucky enough to wash up here"

"Yeah… lucky" I said sardonically, unconvinced.

"Better than dead"

"Point taken"

"So you really can't remember what you were doing before you woke up?"

"Nah, but I remember most of my life before. But luckily I remember my dream" I smiled in relief and happiness.

"You're dream" Boris raised a brow at that, interest evident in his gaze.

"Uh-huh, my dream, to be the best martial artist" I said proudly, and then broke into another coughing fit. It was then that Maria sauntered in, and immediately set to scolding her husband as she sat on the side of the bed with a bowl of steaming soup in her hands.

"Oh come now Boris, don't make the girl talk so much. She needs rest for goodness sake! Go make sure the boat hasn't drifted away or something" she said sternly, but there was a loving look in her eyes and humour danced in the older males. Waving his hand he bid the two of us a goodnight and went upstairs, presumably to change since he was still in his pyjamas.

"Oh, that man. Sometimes I wonder why I married him" she grumbled, and I couldn't help but chuckled a little.

"Maybe it was a moment of madness?" I offered, and she nodded solemnly.

"I'm afraid so" she admitted. A moment passed before the two of us ended up laughing, though the fun was cut short when I had another coughing fit. Maria fretted over me and helped me drink some water, before she had me eating her specialty soup. And it was good, too. Fish and oysters, seasoned with herbs I was unfamiliar with, all floating around in a thick broth that soothed my throat like nothing else. I ate slowly, with the aid of Maria, and by the time I was done a great tiredness washed over me. The woman smiled, and tucked me in before collecting the dishes and leaving.

It went on much the same for a week. I would wake up at random intervals, to which either Maria or Boris would be waiting in that chair, watching over me –on occasion it was the doctor, but I think that was just coincidence- and making sure I was alright. Then they would bring me something to eat, I quickly learned Maria was the cook of this house, and they would tell me more about their home and the surrounding islands. Boris was definitely a born teacher, he even brought out a map and showed me all the places and what they were like, and while Maria was talkative she wasn't really one for gossip and was more interested in my opinions and thoughts, which was just as fun.

As it turned out, everyone knew about me. The girl buried alive. And a few of the townsfolk had visited, wishing me well and bringing gifts. To which I humbly, and somewhat awkwardly, accepted. I wasn't sure why they were being so friendly, they didn't know me and had no reason to be concerned. Maria had quickly realized how uncomfortable I was about this and took the gifts for me and managed to keep the visits quick, stating that I needed rest and all that.

"It's rare for anything unexpected to happen here, and they're all excited to meet you. You're like a walking adventure, and you did survive something that would kill most people" she had explained, and I had to laugh at that. At least I brought something good to this town.

A few days later, the doctor finally said I should be well enough to try and sit up, but he warned me to be slow and if I feel any intense pain around my spine to lie back down immediately. I nodded and slowly, so slowly, I was able to force my unused arms into working order and push myself into a sitting position. My back hurt, but the rest of my body ached just as much so I'm pretty sure that there was nothing worrying about my spine so far. Maria braced some pillows behind me, and I gratefully lent against them. Smiling thankfully at the woman, I looked to the doctor.

"General pain, but nothing to worry about" I assured "So how long till I can walk?" I asked after a moment. The couple taking care of me smiled knowingly, I had made my displeasure of being immobile known many times, and while they humoured me they too were beginning to feel restless about me being bedridden. The doctor sighed, knowing where this conversation was headed, before giving a single curt nod.

"Fine, but slow and steady, alright?" I nodded excitedly, and slowly pulled the many blankets off my body and tested out my legs. Bending them and curling my toes, that ever present ache was the only thing unpleasant I felt as blood returned to my lower limbs and my muscles relished in moving. Pins and needles covered the expanse of my legs and feet as I swung them over the edge and let them touch the cool wood floor, taking a calming breath, I waited for a moment more for my blood to regulate before making that final push.

My legs screamed in pain, and my veins were suddenly on fire while the muscles stung like acid. My back refused to straighten properly, my spine popping in multiple places and as the muscles were pulled it felt like they were being stretched to their very limit. My shoulders felt heavy, like I was carrying a fifty-kilo bag, and my neck was stiff. I suffered a severe dizzy spell from the sudden shift in my centre of gravity.

But I stood my ground, I waited for the dizziness to fade and my vision to return to normal before I forced my back to straighten, which led to more pressure to be released from my spine and I could have sworn I tore a back muscle. My legs didn't feel as though they were on fire anymore, but they still stung slightly and ached badly, most likely a mix of being unused and the veins getting used to having blood flowing through them. Finally, I stood straight and though my fingers were tingling from blood suddenly pooling there from gravity, I felt accomplished and momentarily forgot my pain.

"See? Nothing at all to worry about" I stated. Boris and Maria were smiling happily at me, and I returned it with my own bright smile. The doctor –Doctor Wells, I believe he introduced himself as- looked relieved and gave me his own sort of smile. He was a blonde man with brown eyes that were flecked with amber, and they were very pretty. He stood and, not surprisingly, was a good head or so above me. Boris was a giant, I realized. He easily towered over everyone in the room; I mean, Doctor Wells only came up to his chest! And Maria was shorter than me, and I was a little above average in height for my age so you can see just how odd-looking it is that someone so tall can marry someone so short.

"Yes, yes. Can you try walking?" Doctor Wells asked, and I swallowed before nodding. Unconsciously I held out my hand, and Maria was the first to move and grasp it, I looked up from where I was staring at my feet and smiled thankfully at her. Boris walked over to my other side and lightly held my arm, knowing I would be needing help with this. Taking a deep breath, I moved one shaky leg and my other leg promptly gave out under the sudden extra weight. The couple caught me and helped back onto my feet.

"Okay, that's enough. We don't want to push-"

"I can do this!" I cut him off, glaring at the ground. Taking a deep breath, I focused on my feet again. This time I slowly put my weight on my left leg, and shakily slid my right foot over the floor. Placing it down again, even though it barely left the cool ground in the first place, I kept my legs bent. Slowly I added weight onto my right leg, and slowly moved my left. After what felt like hours, which was only about a minute, I felt like I had run a marathon, when really I had barely taken even a small step. But at least I was beginning to move, with help, but it was better than nothing.

"Baby steps" I muttered, allowing the couple to sit me down on the bed again. I leant against the wall of pillows and covered my bandaged legs with the blankets. I was still covered from head to toe with bandages and Band-Aids and white patches were bandages were just unpractical to place. The doctor was surprised by my fast recovery, and estimated that I would be able to walk on my own within a week. So, naturally, I was determined to prove him wrong. I managed to do it in five days.

It had been early morning, and Boris had come ambling down with steps heavy with sleep. He had stepped into the lounge room, which was where my bed was for some reason, with the intent of getting the morning mail. He exited the building and returned shortly afterwards, going through the bills and 'get well' cards sent by the many people who knew me, before he finally paused. Eyes trailed from the empty bed, before going to the sofa where I was currently located, reading a book that was about Alabasta. His eyes continued to flicker from me to the bed and back again.

"You just had to prove him wrong, didn't you?" he asked with a sigh, though humour laced his tone. "Maria is going to throw a fit" he added after a moment, and I couldn't help but smile.

"Yep, but I'm pretty sure she'll be happy as well" I said, and he chuckled before going to the kitchen to prepare some coffee.

As it turns out, Maria did throw a fit, a completely joyous and happy one. She gave a quick scolding on following doctors' orders, before hugging me tightly and going on about how now I could actually be of use and see the town and a bunch of other stuff I only half understood. Boris, thank Christ for the tall man, saved me and told his wife that while I could walk I was still healing. The woman had practically dropped me.

In the next few days, I began helping around the house with some easy jobs like cleaning and laundry. Maria was a real slave-driver, but she was super helpful and never made me do more than I could. Once I got rid of the bandages –my skin can actually breathe- Boris took me out fishing. I can tell you now: my hands were covered in tiny red dots from continuously poking myself with the hooks.

When I was finally well enough to actually see the town, I realised that my clothes from the landslide had been thrown out because they really were nothing more than dirty rags. But Maria, the woman of multiple talents, had sewn me a new dress. Storm season had ended, apparently I was just a week off the end of storm season, but that wasn't really surprising knowing my luck. The dress was a pale blue, like an early winter morning sort of blue, and went down to my knees. The area around the chest was bunched and the thick straps, which had furls on them, could hang off my shoulders and the dress wouldn't slip. I blushed and thanked the woman profusely for the gift, and after slipping on some white sandals I followed the shorter woman out of the house and into the street, my simple braid swinging slightly behind me.

It was mid-morning, so the centre plaza was busy with people. I blinked at how large the plaza actually was. Maria explained that the plaza had been built with the intention of all the citizens being able to stand in it with room to move. I had blinked before nodding, still amazed at the sheer expanse of the centre. The stone work, for the floor, was a mix of pinkish red and white tiles, the white tiles had grey and black blurry dots on it and the patterns were very abstract. In the centre was a large and simple grey-stone fountain. Stalls and shops surrounded the area, and I felt a little overwhelmed. For the last two weeks my world consisted of Boris's and Maria's home, and now it was suddenly expanding. I trailed after Maria like a duckling following its mother, holding a loose weaved bag. The first stop was the clothing store, and I inwardly cringed at having to tell Maria that I wasn't really a dress type. Sure, they were comfy but not practical for what I wanted to do.

Surprisingly enough, the woman understood. "I was a rebel once too, you know" were her exact words. And I can honestly say I was not surprised by that, it was fairly easy to imagine a tomboy with blonde hair and a short stature. So, we spent a good two hours trying on clothes and talking. I met at least a dozen people and it was a bit unnerving to be known by so many yet not know them.

As the day continued on, I swear I met at least half the population of Shore Town. And they all loved talking with me; even the extremely feminine girls whom I usually would hate having to deal with were okay. So, by the time I got home with Maria I was exhausted both physically and mentally. Putting everything away, I walked over to the sofa and collapsed next to Boris.

"Have fun?"

"I have discovered I'm not a social butterfly, and that dealing with people is so not worth the stress. Do you have any idea how many names I've had to memorise?" I complained, although I couldn't deny I was happy. I mean, who wouldn't be? I went shopping in the One Piece world for the very first time! I even bought some things! I have a book of my very own! And I got a notebook; I decided I would use it sort of like a diary. Writing my day to day life, or week to week, since I don't think I would be that dedicated.

"Poor you" Boris said unsympathetically. I nodded, pretending that I didn't hear his tone.

"I know" I mourned, and Maria walked in to shake her head at my antics.

"Seriously girl, it's not that bad. Granted some of those girls were annoying, none of them are as well behaved as you" she said proudly, I grinned mischievously at her.

"Yes, but that's because most girls my age aren't me" I quipped and she rolled her eyes. Deciding to have a shower, I announced that I shall depart and headed upstairs. Going into my new room quickly, I plucked some more casual clothes from the stacks on my new bed, before going into the bathroom and enjoyed some hot water.

Drying my hair as I walked down the hall, I turned into my room and began to pack away everything that was not put where I believed they should be. My room was a soft grey with a tinge of blue, my covers were a mix of beige and bronze colours that gave a rich earthy feel to it, while my furniture was all dark wood colours, while my desk chair (Which was cushioned!) was white with blue cushioning. And the bed was painted white as well, so it actually went with something. All in all, I loved my room. Shame I couldn't stay forever, since if I really wanted to change the events then…

Suddenly my situation really hit me, and it felt like a kick to the gut. The air left my lungs, and I sat on my bed because if I didn't then my legs wouldn't give out under me. I was going to be changing events, changing things. I could keep people from dying! They weren't just characters anymore; they were people, real people. It was a world full of people other than the mentioned characters, like Boris and Maria and the shopkeepers and the Marines and everyone.

'_I can stop Thatch from dying!'_ I realized happily. _'But doesn't he have to die? Otherwise, the story wouldn't go as it's meant to'_ I thought, my mood turning sour. I leant back and rested down on my soft blankets. It's true, if I stopped the attack then Blackbeard wouldn't be one of the main antagonists in the series and that would screw up the plot line irreparably, then my knowledge of events would be useless.

Turning on my side, I rested my head under my pillow. So… maybe if Thatch didn't go on that mission- no, again it would screw up the plot and even if I take his place I would see it coming and I might not survive, which would kind of negate my point being here despite the fact that I should be dead already. Sighing I tried to think of something that might work.

What if it was too late? What if Thatch had already died, and Ace was captured and the two year time-skip had already happened? My mind continued to assault me with doubts and 'what if's and all the things that could go wrong and I felt like a weight was crushing me and something was pushing at my lungs and chest and I couldn't breathe, tears pricked my eyes at the thoughts continued to run through my mind and scenarios went from bad to worse.

I covered my eyes with one hand, twisting onto my back again, and took several deep breaths. _'Calm down, you're having a panic attack, it's just the anxiety. Calm down, calm down. Just think this through; the unknown variables may not be bad, calm down. Calm down'_ she repeated her mantra. When she got into high school, in the city, she had begun to have panic attacks like this when she was put under great stress and she didn't know what to do. This usually happened in exams and tests, but normally I could handle it because I knew the answers, had the gist of an answer, or was able to completely bullshit my way through the whole thing and still get good grades.

I wiped my eyes and looked at the ceiling again. Okay, so for now I would just focus on short term things. Baby steps, that's how I roll. If I made it to the Whitebeard crew before the Division Leaders Death, then I'll try to find out what to do then, for now I need to focus on getting out to sea.

"There is no way I'm joining a crew" I muttered to myself, knowing just how much that would complicate things. Sure, some crews I would love to join. Strawhats, Heart Pirates, Whitebeard and all those others, it would be so much fun and I know I would love it. But is I really want to make a difference, I think I would need to be weaving something a little more intricate.

In my head, a plan was already forming. I would need a lot of information to be able to plan my steps in accordance. So, a spy network would be needed, which meant I probably wouldn't be able to spend months at sea at a time, not if I wanted to remain updated. Even with the Den Den Mushi's it could still be difficult.

"Maa, I'll just work on it when I get there" I muttered, and instead rose from my bed. If nothing else, I would make sure Ace lived. I would like Thatch to live as well, but I couldn't think of any way to let him live without causing some major problems.

"Thanks Death, you've really made this easy" I grumbled before entering the kitchen, and finding Maria was preparing dinner. I smiled and went over to help, since she has been teaching me cooking, and we fell into conversation easily. Boris would come in and join us in our conversations, but was usually ushered out by his tiny wife. I laughed and chatted and enjoyed my time, no matter what, while I could. I would be leaving soon, and I didn't want to spoil the good mood.

While I couldn't stay forever, I know that, perhaps I could stay for a little bit longer. I'm sure Death wouldn't mind that.

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**How's that? Hopefully I'll be able to post another chapter (Which probably won't be nearly this long) and I wouldn't mind feed back. Hopefully you enjoyed this.**


	2. Departure

**Okay, I did a quick fix-up of this chapter. I'll be going through this story and picking out any typos I find, if anyone would like to help point them out, go ahead! Your help would be a godsend! Anyways, I own nothing besides my OC's. Trust me, One Piece is not mine. I checked.**

**Read &amp; Enjoy!**

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I left a month later.

Originally I had planned to leave three weeks after that, since I was still recovering and Maria and Boris wanted to make sure I had everything and knew everything I needed to for when I left. That and Maria had demanded that they adopt me, and that I write her whenever I could. Plus Boris wanted to make sure I knew what I could and couldn't eat, especially fish and coral and plants and everything, along with learning a bunch about herbal teas. That was fun.

_Anyways_ the reason why that didn't happen was because someone found out, who told someone who told someone else who overheard it and you know how gossip goes. So, before the day was over -which was really something because it was three in the afternoon- _everybody_ knew I was planning on leaving soon, which meant there had to be a party.

Three days later, there was four days of partying. People from the other _islands_ came around and said their hellos and goodbyes. Which meant more socialising, but for the most part everyone just had a good time. Most got drunk at one point or another, and it was games galore. Music was ever present and if you wanted to sleep you had to go to the next town or be passed out. Half the time I was hiding in some alley or went off into the forest, enjoying the cool and somewhat quite atmosphere before I was found again and pulled back into the fray. Most of the time it was Boris, the man should have been a tracker I swear, and us two would just sit and talk. A few times Maria would find us both and join in.

Then finally, _finally,_ the day of my departure came and I was boarding a ship to head to the next island away from The Islands. The whole island, and then some, had come to see me off. I looked up at the large structure, and the weight of my pack became more evident. It wasn't overly heavy, but it was impossible for me to forget it was there right now. Taking a deep breath, I turned towards my mother and father.

"I'll write" I said, my voice wavered and I smiled as Maria wiped her tears.

"You better, or I'll come around and give you such a scolding" her voice cracked and her tears came anew. Boris wrapped a supportive arm around her before he turned to me.

"You take care of yourself, and stay away from cliffs" he tried to joke, to be light-hearted, but it came out weaker than intended. I smiled and waited for a few seconds, and then when I realized they were stalling, I scoffed and rolled my eyes before stepping forward and hugging them both tightly. They returned my embrace just as fiercely and we stayed like that for a few seconds.

"Okay, the ships gonna leave- mum can you- Dad! Put me down- oh no, no, nonononono! God dammit woman! Okay, okay. More hugs, there, happy? Now I really need to go- don't you dare use the puppy eyes on me! I will run away!" I finally said, after trying and failing to escape the couple that had become my family. We all laughed and I was finally released. I stepped away slowly, their hands slipping from my grasp.

Finally, I turned away and walked up the gangplank. My steps were light, but they felt heavy. They were filled with sadness, yes, but they held excitement and joy and filled with the rush of the first steps of an adventure. My adventure. Wow, I like the sound of that.

Stepping onto that deck was like stepping into the first rays of sunshine after a long winter. People were bustling about, getting ready to head set sail. I turned to face the crowd below me. It was silent, and I felt a little awkward. Was I supposed to make a speech? Eh, why not?

"Thank you everyone for everything you've done for me!" I started, my voice ringing out and echoing amongst the crowd "I understand that I may have not met everyone, or have not known everyone as much as I should like, and I like less than half of you half as well as you deserve" she said, and fought back a fit of giggles while everyone looked about each other, but a few cracked a grin or shook their head at my antics. Got to love Lord of The Rings

"But all that stuff aside…" I paused and took a deep breath "I will truly miss you all, and I would like to stay, and no doubt many of you would rather I do" she gave a pointed look to my family, who didn't look the least bit sheepish "However, I would like to see this world, to go on an adventure. _My adventure_" I finished, and god did it sound so good, so I'll say it again "My adventure" Yup, still good. The sails were unfurled and the anchor was hoisted, I turned away for a moment to scan the deck before we began to move, I turned back to the crowd, trying to think of something to say.

"It's goodbye for now, but not forever!" I finished, and the crowd erupted in cheers. Wow. I never thought myself as a public speaker but… just wow. I quickly ran towards the rigging and climbed up to the crow's nest, I stared at the island until it was lost to the horizon. Finally, I stepped down from the crow's nest and sat down on the wooden frame that held the sail.

"_When it all feel like, everything's impossible, and you don't fit right in a crowd go out and break the mould…"_ I started to sing Brave by Action Item. I continued to watch the horizon, occasionally looking down to watch the crew scurry about or laze around. They seemed pretty content. Everyone knew one another and their conversations came easily, with little prompt. I wonder if I'll ever find someone to be able to do that with. I knew that I had to be careful, lest I accidently slip something about my world to someone and that could lead to problems.

For the next month I was at sea, learning about sailing and becoming quite familiar with the crew. They were pretty ordinary, and talked about family and friends and events. It was nice, but at the same time I felt like something was missing. I guess with my knowledge on how weird and crazy and wonderful this world could be that I was expecting something a little more abnormal. Maybe it was just the pirate crews that were stranger than others, which suited me just fine. Since, chances are, I would be involved quite a bit with pirates and criminals.

In that month, I had sent letters to my family back at The Islands, and received plenty. Those weird birds that deliver newspapers acted like messengers, I would give them some coin and tell them the location and poof, mail sent. Though the gaps between sending and receiving mail were few and far between, but it was still nice to wake up and find that a letter was delivered for me.

When we finally docked, it was only to restock, but even that would take a few days. So, I hoped off and started exploring the island. It was a reasonably sized one, with big part towns that was full of trade. I took a deep breath and smelt salt and spices, drinks and meats, I smelt sweet things and smoky things and some things I couldn't quite identify. Pulling the straps of my pack tighter, I turned to the first mate of the ship I was on.

"I'll head out from here" I said, and he gave me a surprised look. Obviously he had expected me to stay with them until they reach the very end of their trip before they headed home.

"But… Boris and Maria asked us to take you all the way" he reasoned, proving my theory correct. I laughed a little and face him fully.

"Aye, you did. But I'm a traveller now, and this will be good practice at the very least. Thank you for taking me this far" I stuck my hand out; he paused for a second before sighing and shaking my hand.

"Maria is going to throw a fit" he muttered, and I laughed at his sour face.

"When doesn't she? I'm sure Boris will save you, give my regards!" I said as I began walking away, waving before I vanished into the crowd. Weaving through the rush of people and making sure nothing was stolen. I would stay for three days; first would be to find my bearings, next would be to sell my wares or enter competitions, and the last would be so I could find a ship that's going wherever. I immediately set course to town, and looked for cheap but decent lodgings. It took the better half of an hour, but I was able to locate a place that didn't look like it was a brothel or was ridiculously priced.

I sighed as I fell onto the bumpy bed. I stared at the ceiling for a few long moments, and then decided that staying still was not going to be a thing with me, and promptly rose and exited the establishment that was my hotel. Taking my wallet with me since I might decide to buy something, like food or provisions or something along those lines, who knows?

It was around noon, so it was lunch hour. Which meant that going to get a bite to eat would be a waste of time, since I would have to wait in line and since I recently discovered my restless nature that idea was quickly repulsed, and instead replaced by the happier idea of browsing some shops that sold travellers equipment. But where would that be?

"Eh, I'll just go looking" I shrugged to myself before heading off in a random direction. My mind went onto more annoying figures: _finance_.

I knew that I had enough for about three weeks' worth of provisions, which included lodging and clothes. Plus hygiene and first aid, herbs for teas and other small bits and pieces, and maps and pretty much anything meant for survival. I do plan to spend a lot of time out in the wild, after all. Currently I had clothes and a first aid kit (Which held way more than the standard stuff) and… some hygiene stuff, but beyond that I had barely anything else.

I sighed in disappointment and turned a random road, which just happened to be a more shady part of town. I rolled my eyes as a bunch of guys looked at me suddenly, and shoved my hands in the pockets of my maroon hoodie and continued to walk, my ponytail swishing slightly with my movements. My feet were mostly bare, with only some bandaging covering the soles and the heel while the rest were bare. My black cargo pants scuffed the ground, which was paved with concrete but cracked and had pieces missing.

A group of three males intercepted my previously pleasant walk with lecherous grins and haughty attitudes. I raised a brow at them, and immediately knew what they were after. They weren't exactly hard to figure out. One opened his mouth to speak but I cut him off.

"No"

"What?" he asked obviously confused.

"I said no, whatever you were gonna say I'm not agreeing to it. Excuse me" I sidestepped, but it seemed they were intent on ruining my walk and refused to let me pass. It seemed I may have ruffled their feathers, since they seemed a little affronted by my decisive dismissal.

"You little bitch!" the apparent leader spat, his stained teeth glistening and his eyes flared with unveiled anger. Wow, touchy much?

"Woof woof" I quipped, which seemed to stun them again. But they recovered pretty quickly.

"Oi, don't you know who you're talkin' to? His dad is a gang leader" one of the leaders' buddies supplied. I smiled at him and gave an appreciating nod.

"Thank you for that information" my words seemed to shoot panic amongst them, and I chuckled at them. "Hey, I won't say anything about your behaviour if you take me to you daddy" I offered. But really I was just baiting him.

"I ain't scared of my dad!" he announced and swung his fist. I leant back a bit to avoid the hit, and grabbed his swinging arm. Giving a sharp tug the boy stumbled forward and I let go of his arm to drive my fist into his gut. The force caused him to traverse through the air for a few metres before skidding and rolling to a stop. I blinked at my strength, and how easy it was to predict and counter the boys attack.

'_That's right, Death upgraded my skills so I could skip ahead a bit and wouldn't spend so much time training'_ I remembered and returned my hand to its pocket. I looked on bored for a moment, while everyone else stared in shock, before looking to one of the lads following the gang leaders' son.

"I have a message for this boys' father, could you please take me to him? And you" I turned to the other one, and he flinched "Take your buddy to a hospital or something, I'm pretty sure I felt something break" when neither one moved, I glared and took a menacing step forward. They scurried to obey, and I followed my escort further into the slums.

"Uh, Richard won't be happy about what you did, or about you coming around like this" the older man warned as he walked into a building, nodding at the guard as he passed. I took that moment to scan the building. It was large, and looked more like an office building than a mansion.

"I would be disappointed if he wasn't" I returned, he nodded but other than that didn't react. I continued to follow him as he led me up stairs and down halls until we reached a set of large double-doors. I raised a brow at that, but schooled my features again a second later. The doors opened and I was lead into a spacious room.

It had a sofa and coffee table in the middle and on the other side of the room was a large mahogany desk and large leather seat, two tall back chairs in front of that. They looked comfortable enough, though I didn't like the idea of being boxed in like that. The man sitting at the desk looked like a real pimp. Violet suit with a fedora of the same colour, a red tie and shoes, to finish the style, I mean he even had a damn feather!

"And you would be?" he asked, arrogance and a little bit of curiosity lacing his tone. His displeasure at being interrupted was all over his face. I caught sight of two swordsmen on either side of him, standing against the wall in the shadow of the large window behind the desk, one had long black hair kept in a low ponytail while the other had short, straight, brown hair.

'_A decent sniper could deal with you easily'_ was my immediate thought, but I kept my features calm but slightly bored. I walked around the furniture and stood a little ways from the desk, the bodyguards stepped forward a little and I couldn't help but praise the fact that they actually took their jobs seriously.

"Alexandra… Kenly" I said, remembering that my last name was no longer the one I was born into. My surname was Kenly now; the one from my old world was… no longer a part of me.

"Well, Alexandra Kenly, why are you here? Interrupting my work no less" the man said, and mentally scoffed at his behaviour. Well, that explained why his son acted as he did.

"Isn't courteous to give your own name once someone has given you theirs?" I asked calmly, somewhat mocking, completely ignoring his question. The man seemed to choke on his surprise and hissed at me.

"Watch yourself girl, you might find yourself losing that tongue of yours" he said and I only raised a brow at him, to which he growled at. God, it was so easy to ruffle this man. His swordsmen grabbed their swords, prepared to draw them and cut me down. I was slightly worried about the potential fight. I had never fought anyone with a sword before, and I would be fighting two.

"I had come on friendly terms, but if you would rather skip the pleasantries…" I paused, cocking my head to the side and stared at him contemplatively. He smirked at me, obviously believing he had the upper hand. He gestured towards his two guards and they stepped forward, I only gave him a deadpanned stare.

"I have a business proposition for you" he raised a brow at that, but indicated for me to continue "I want you to be an informant of mine. You won't have to do much, just give me the gist of the comings and goings of this island and then report to me when something odd starts happening" I finished evenly. He lent forward and laced his fingers together in front of him.

"And in return?" he asked, obviously expecting something big.

"You live"

He did a mix between a scoff and a choking sound before his face went red. Standing angrily he slammed his hands on desk "You'll do what?" he spat, before gesturing for his guards again with the order of 'kill her' being the only words needed to be spoken. I stayed calm, my hands still tucked away in my pockets. I wanted to show off a bit, and beating two armed men with no hands would do just that.

Both ran around the desk, swords drawn, and both swung horizontally. One swing was higher than the other; the top sword would probably take my head while the other would open up my stomach. The blades glinted silver in the light from the window, and I saw my opportunity.

Stepping forward, I pushed my legs up and to the side, bringing my body with it and allowing my form to remain straight while being horizontal in mid-air. Time seemed to slow as my body twisted, as the blades passed above and below me I was facing the ceiling, and as I descended I was facing towards the amazed gang leader. One bare foot touched the cool wood floor, performing a half-twirl I kicked the back of the brown haired man's knee, I retracted my foot for a moment before striking out like a snake. My heel made contact with his head and he was out cold.

I ducked and side-stepped a diagonal high swing, and performed a handless cartwheel to avoid the second swing aimed at my legs. Again I kicked for the knees, but this was a side sweep that hit the side of his right knee and there was a distinct 'pop' sound. He fell onto his knees with a surprised scream, I had probably dislocated it. Stepping forward I brought my own knee up to collide with his jaw, sticking my foot out I pushed his chest and he fell back. Not dead, but he wouldn't be getting up anytime soon.

I looked down at my opponents, a deadpanned look crossing my features, though I hid my smugness at beating these guys without hands pretty well. I looked to the man who was now shaking like a leaf.

"I think you'll find that killing me is far easier said than done. However, I understand my mistake. For such a long term deal, both sides must give a certain amount, and you will already be risking your business and life in helping me. So" she paused, to make sure he was actually listening "I owe you a favour, just give me a call and I'll see how I can help you. I'm not asking you to do much really, just report to me anything out of the ordinary. If the Marines become edgy all of a sudden, I want to know. If trade notably changes, I want to know. If a new pirate crew or gang pop up in the area, or you hear of one, I want to know" I said, commanded, and waited patiently for a reply. It didn't take long, since it was obvious that I could kill him (Not that I would, I'm not that bad yet) and that I could be a potential ally.

"A-alright… How do I contact you?" he asked, still a little shaky but calming down. I looked around, idly wondering how I was going to solve this one. I actually hadn't thought of a way of communication.

"Letters, send me letters. Basic reports, really. But if anything big happens, especially with the Marines… do you have a small Den Den Mushi?" he nodded at my question and went to a large wooden display case; he opened the glass doors and searched for one that would work for them.

"How far are you planning to go?" he asked, his demeanour had changed from his arrogant persona to one of a professional businessman. I smiled for a moment before putting back on my calm façade. I was glad that I had made the right choice in investing in this man; he would be a good informant.

"To the New World at least" I said, he paused in surprise before pulling out a small red transponder snail. He handed it to me and offered me a seat, to which I obliged. My demeanour became friendlier as we sorted out the details. He would send me a basic report once a week of the basic activities, comings and goings, and behaviour of the major and minor factors of the island. The Marines, the harbour, trade, business (Both legal and otherwise) and had even offered to set up a few spies in the navy. I had told him that it was up to him, since it was his men he was risking. He seemed to take my words to heart, but said he would still work out a few things.

As I rose to leave, I left a weeks' worth of money on his desk. When he asked about it I pointed to his injured men "for their medical bill, it won't cover all of it but it should help. Oh, and can you point me to the nearest travellers shop?" had been my answer. He had called for the man who escorted me here, and gave him instructions to take me wherever I wanted to go and to make sure I was treated properly.

Two hours and one long trip back to the hotel, and I was back at my sleeping quarters. Dumping all the stuff I bought on the floor, I began to pull everything out and sort them in groups. Food, clothing, first aid and so on, and then I started to put them in my backpack. I the larger stuff away and put the smaller things in the pockets, a roll-up swag was tied at the bottom of the pack by straps and I even added a few clip-ons.

By the time I was finished, it was dusk and I was tired. I would be selling herbs and teas at the plaza tomorrow. I had seen a bunch of people doing it, and wondered how my first selling endeavour would go. Maybe I could give a few free lessons to bring them in? Eh, who knows? I'll just see how things work first.

I got into my bed and stared at the ceiling; it was wood and had water stains in the corners and chips from whatever had caused them. It was old, and had seen a lot of things. I always found old things charming, like old buildings and old books, or old toys. I wondered what I would see on my own journey, what would happen and how things would change, if they changed at all. I wasn't plagued with panic and doubt like before. My eyes closed and I drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

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**Good? Bad? Somewhere in the middle? Again, if you find any typos or mistakes, please point them out so I can fix them!**

**Hoped you enjoyed this chapter.**

**R&amp;R!**

**Imma outta here!**


	3. Herbs

**I'll admit, this one will be shorter than the others, but that's bound to happen sometimes. **

**This one might seem a bit dull, but basically I'm planning on Alex having a little adventure or some event happening in each of the Blues before going off to the Grand Line. Hope you enjoy this!**

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Dawn; there was always something about that word. It was majestic, it symbolised hope, and just saying the word makes you think of beautiful sunrises with gold-tinted clouds with pink and purple hues.

This was not one of those dawns.

One of my neighbours were arguing with someone down the hall at _five in the fucking morning_, and more people were opening their doors telling them to _shut up_ but that only caused _more_ noise. Unfortunately, I couldn't go back to sleep even if they did shut up and it was quiet again because of the bad mood they put me in. Have you ever tried going to sleep while frustrated or angry? Yeah, it's not easy is it?

Muttering darkly under my breath, I got out of my warm bed and stretched. Since the bed didn't have the softest mattress in the world, my back still had some built up tension that was released with a pleasant 'pop' of my spine. I really love that feeling, though it also makes me worry that I'm going to screw up my spine somehow.

Going over to the connected bathroom, I enjoyed a hot shower –even if the water practically dripped out of the shower head- and dried myself quickly. Changing into a pair of black slacks and my red hoodie, I chose to have a dark grey sleeveless underneath; I packed up my stuff and left the building. Going to the plaza, I saw that people were beginning to set up shop. I then realized that I didn't even have anything to place my wares on.

"Crap" I muttered under my breath. I didn't even have enough money to hitch a ride on the next ship. Looking around, I saw a black haired woman setting up a stand for tea sets and china. She looked about twenty, and was dressed in a dark blue dress that went down to her ankles. Biting my lip, I wondered if she wouldn't mind sharing a table. Making my decision, I walked over and cleared my throat awkwardly. She looked up and smiled politely at me.

"I'm sorry, but I'm not quite ready yet, if you would like to come back later…" she trailed off as she saw –or smelled really- just what I was carrying.

"Um, thank you but that's not why I'm here. I was hoping to sell some herbs and teas but I don't have a table, and I was wondering if you wouldn't mind-"

"And why should I, if you don't mind me asking" she cut in fiercely, but not trying to sound too rude. I rubbed the back of my neck and sighed, why are these things so difficult for me?

"I'm only staying here for today, maybe tomorrow… but I need money. Besides, selling tea as well as tea sets is bound to bring in customers. I can share whatever I make from my herbs with you, since it is your stall I'll be using" I finished, and the woman seemed to think on it for a good minute before nodding. She stuck her hand out, and I shook it gratefully.

"Alright then, we'll sort out payment after the day is done. Let's set up shop. Oh, and my name is Katlin" she offered with a more genuinely friendly smile. I returned the smile and moved to help her set up the shelves.

"I'm Alexandra" and like that, we set to work. Building the stall wasn't hard, it was sort of like a puzzle, and when it was finished I realised just how big it was. There were three display cases set up behind the table, and were filled with various china of various styles. Eastern, Western and there were some real cutesy ones as well. When I was done staring Katlin gestured to the table and I immediately began setting up my herbal teas.

"What do we have?" the older woman asked. I blinked for a moment before looking down at what I had. The colours varied and some smells were strong while others barely had any smell at all.

"Okay, I've place them in their groups. These ones are medicinal herbs: they help with muscle pains, arthritis, sore throats, headaches, colds, allergies and some help strengthen the immune system. These ones here are for mostly for relaxation and vitalisation, they can help with stress and naturally wake you up in the morning without using caffeine, or they can just put you in a good mood. These ones are good for those with heart or blood problems, and these ones are to help with metabolism. So anyone on diets would definitely want these. Each one has a range of flavours as well, they can be sweet or bitter or plain, they can be lemony or citrus and more" I finished, taking a deep breath when I realised I said all that in one breath. I'm really enthusiastic about herbal teas.

"Oh wow…" the woman said, before turning to me "And you made all these?" she gestured to the packets and boxes that held all the types of herbs. I nodded, a small blush covering my cheeks. When I had seen the book on herbs I had jumped at the chance to learn about it.

"Yeah, I can even make pastes to help with bruising and disinfectants, but I'm only beginning on that" I added, and the dark haired woman –she had pretty green eyes, I noted- continued to stare at me in amazement.

"How old are you?"

"Seventeen… oh, what's the date?"

"10th of February"

"I'll be eighteen this year"

"Oh… and you know all this so young?" she asked, clearly amazed. I really didn't have the heart to tell her I learned all this in a little over a month. I don't know how I managed to remembered all this either -probably because of Maria- but I did and it would no doubt come in handy in many situations to come. Besides, if I'm going to be a martial artist I'm going to get hurt a lot, so knowing this stuff will be beneficial to my health.

I started boiling some water with a mini camping stove that I had bought yesterday, and started making some herbal tea with a sweet aroma. Pouring it into some of the cups that Katlin had set out for me, we chatted idly as people began to amble into the plaza. The smell brought customers, and as I began explaining the different teas and their uses, people began to crowd around.

"All at reasonable prices too!" Katlin would say when people began to think that all this stuff would be too expensive for them. We showed off the china, and we even made deals.

"And you'll get one packet of herbal tea of your choice, for each tea set purchased" I said randomly, and while the dark haired woman was surprised she hid it well, and rolled with it. That really brought in the customers, especially the women who were mad about diets and looking good. Olden folk with aching bones and sore muscles, those who had stressful jobs and people who just wanted something sweet to have, all came around to look and buy. We gave free samples to some of the more reluctant buyers, and by the end of the day, most of my herbs were gone and half the china was too.

As the sky began to darken and the sun dips below the horizon, we began to pack away. Katlin would dismantle everything and I would load it into the horse-drawn cart her husband had dropped off an hour or so ago. I had questioned why he didn't help out, but she explained how he worked at the docks. I hadn't said anything more on the subject.

"Here" I said after we had split the profits and were about to part, the woman looked down at the parchment with a confused expression. "These are the recipes for the more popular herbal teas we sold, some ingredients might be hard to get around here, but this should help your business" I explained. I had noticed how underfed Katlin and her husband were, and knew they were struggling to make ends meet. Fun thing about my profession, you learn a lot about the human body and often notice things unbidden.

I was startled out of my thoughts when Katlin threw her arms around me and hugged me tightly, not sensing a threat I relaxed and returned the hug, rubbing her back comfortingly as she sobbed out words of gratitude I only half understood. When she finally let go she took the paper and wiped her eyes and smiled at me with a bittersweet expression.

"Thank you so much, you don't realise how important this is for us" she said, placing a loving hand on her flat stomach. I stared uncomprehending at the appendage for a long moment before my eyes widened in realisation.

"You're with child" I breathed, and the woman nodded happily but with a touch of sadness.

"We were so happy when we found out, but we've been struggling for a while now and we were scared that we might have to give up our child" her eyes watered and I placed my hands on her shoulders, when her puffy eyes turned to me I grinned.

"You'll be okay, both of you. Trust me" I said before stepping away and grabbing my pack, slipping it on I waved to the older woman. "I might come around to see the little munchkin" and like that I left the plaza. Idly, I wondered how Katlin would react to the gift I left in her cart.

When I got back to my hotel, I sat down on the bed and pulled out my notebook and began writing down the events of the last few months. By the time I was done, I had filled half the notebook and knew I would need to get a few more real soon. Putting that away, I got out some lined paper and began writing a letter to Maria and Boris. My mum and dad would be wondering why I hadn't sent any letters and I doubt the tall man would be able to hold back his wife for much longer.

"I'll send this tomorrow" I muttered, setting it on my pack and slipping under the covers of my bed. I would be ship hunting tomorrow, and hopefully be going to the next island within the next twenty-four hours.

Morning was, unsurprisingly, noisy and unhappy. The neighbours were yelling at each other _again _and the water still didn't run very well –at least it was hot- and the person manning the front desk was a lazy asshole that was more interested in reading a fashion magazine then tending to customers.

'_No wonder this place was so cheap'_ I thought unhappily as I returned the key and left the building, _never_ to return. As I made my way to the docks, I took in the town. The style was relatively village-like, around the eighteenth century-looking. The road was cobblestone and there were many alleys between the buildings.

Unlike the town, the docks were busy even at this fine hour –around five-thirty- and the men gave passing glances but otherwise left me to my own business while they went about their own. I walked about asking sailors and dockworkers alike if there were any ships leaving port soon, most just shrugged and offered that there might be one further up. However, despite that, it didn't take long to find one that would be leaving within the hour. A quick chat with the captain and a sum of cash later, I was sitting on the railing watching as the island got smaller and smaller until it disappeared from view.

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**Oh yeah, I forgot to mention this. But Alex is about four years ahead of the story when Luffy sets off. So this is about a year before Ace leaves. Just some basic info. Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, and I'll try to have the next one up soon... ish. Maybe a fortnight... ahem! Enjoy your day (Or night)**


	4. North Blue

**Oki-doki. I don't own One Piece, obviously, but there's an extra warning here. This chapter is a bit darker than the others, and their is death in it. I tried not to be to descriptive of those bits... Anyways! Read and enjoy! **

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For the next month or so it was largely the same. Go to the next island and increase my network of informants –both legal and otherwise- before making and selling herbs and teas, then hitchhike a ship –or boat- and head out to the next location. A few times I had to restock on something, or buy something I didn't think I would need. But by the time I left the West Blue, I had a decent amount of info coming in almost every week. So far, nothing major was going on. Some rumours of pirate crews in the area, but that was either false or not something to worry about.

It took a while, but I finally managed to get to the North Blue. The place was colder than expected, so I was quick to buy a scarf and a pair of gloves. The ship that I was on was old, and captain was cranky. Seriously, even though I paid him and helped out amongst the ship he still called me a freeloader. The guy was a nightmare! Needless to say, when we docked I flung myself over the railing and into town.

And then I saw the kind of town I had run into. Suddenly I wished I stayed on the ship. This town was dirty, dark and dank. The people even more so, I mean that literally. Were those guys openly selling drugs? I blinked before shaking my head, there was no way I was staying here three days. I had plenty of money to just leave on a different ship today.

I turned around, intent to head back to the docks –because there was no way I was going to find any informants here- when I overheard a conversation in an alley. The words were hushed but I had long since become attuned to listening in on quiet conversations.

"Did you hear about Gutter? Brad says he ripped some no-name in half down at the ring" I heard one of them say. My brows furrowed at that, what was the ring? Was that a fighting ring or something? I looked up at the afternoon sky, and shoved my hands in me pockets as I leant against the old brick wall. I hadn't had a decent fight in a long while, and I was beginning to worry my skills were getting rusty. Shrugging, I turned into the alley were the men were still chatting. Slipping on my mask of indifference, I stopped a few feet short of them.

"Oi" I called out, and they jumped before whirling to face me. They looked frightened, before they saw that I was a girl and their looks turned lecherous. "You mentioned a fighting ring, where can I find it?" I said plainly, ignoring the suggestive looks I was receiving. They both glance at each other before flanking my sides with smiles they no doubt thought were devilish.

"What would a cute thing like you want to do with a place like the ring?" the guy on my right asked, smiling at me with yellowing teeth. The other was way too skinny to be healthy, but I ignored my discomfort at having them within my personal bubble and raised a brow at the one who talked.

"I have my reasons. So are you gents going to escort me or am I going to have to find someone else?" I asked, beginning to turn away but they both stopped me with hurried words. I nodded to them and they led down a few dark alleys before stopping at a door, Yellow Teeth knocked thrice before the door opened and two burly men stepped out. They glance at us before nodding and letting us pass, though I could feel them looking where they really shouldn't be.

"Suddenly mass murder looks like a pleasant option" I muttered darkly, but luckily neither of them heard me and we continued on. The halls were dark a dimly lit, the floor was concrete and the walls brick. I tried not to laugh at the setting; they were really trying too hard.

As we walked, I heard the faint sound of cheering, and the further we walked the louder it got until it was a deafening roar. The hallway ended and we entered a separate room. It was like a large dome with lights along the wall. The room looked like a mini, indoor version of the Roman Coliseum from my old world. There was a round pit in the middle of the room, the farther you were from the pit the higher up you were. People were cheering and yelling at the participants fighting in the pit, two of them going one on one. It was obvious who was winning.

A large burly man that was nothing but tan skin and muscles was brutally laying into a smaller opponent. The large man had metal wrist bands on both arms, and on them was a single scythe-like blade, curving over the back of his hand and past his knuckles for a few centimetres. A gruesome weapon that was all but ripping through the smaller man, whom was strong in his own right but nowhere near tough enough to handle this giant.

A pained screamed ripped through the stadium and all went quiet as the large man tore his blade through the man stomach and pieces of him flew everywhere. The man was dead in seconds. A few seconds later the crowd erupted in cheers and praise, while I hid my disgust with a blank face.

"I take it he is Gutter" I stated evenly. I had never seen something like that before, not once in my whole life. Sure, I had seen bones broken and poking out of the skin, I had seen torn skin and muscles bare to the outside world but… never had I seen a massacre like this.

'_I feel condemned just by being here'_ I though with a small tremor of apprehension. I had expected some riffraff group of thugs duking it out, not a man literally twice my size that went through men like a hot knife through butter. I could feel it; I could feel that he would have no problem killing me if I fought him. He wouldn't care that I was a girl… in fact he might enjoy it. That is, if he could hit me. I was fast, and I knew how to fight. This man was strong, but you can't hurt what you can't hit.

"Yeah, that's him, he's a big guy. I bet a twenty on him once, got back double" Skinny laughed and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. I forced myself to remain relaxed and not rip the bastards arm off. Mostly ignoring the men, I watched as Gutter soaked in the attention with a victorious grin. Then his eyes caught mine, and I tensed automatically. My eyes stared into his brown ones without fear, or panic, or trepidation. I was calculating, I was calm, and I was uncaring to what he did to his opponent, because he wouldn't get a chance to do the same to me.

"How do you sign up?" I asked, not looking away as the man began to grin with bloodlust. The crowd had grown silent and was watching the exchange. Yellow Teeth made a shocked sound in the back of his throat, and he turned to me.

"Y-you're not gonna fight Gutter, are you? He'll tear through you in seconds"

"I'll take my chances" I replied, and the both men tried to sway me from my decision but both were silenced with a hard glare from me. They seemed to accept it then, and gestured to the man sitting in what appeared to be a VIP booth. Higher up and away from the mob, and he too was staring at me.

'_Seriously, what is with everyone and staring at me'_ I shook my head at that thought, before walking through the crowd towards the booth. When I reached said booth, the man looked up from his seat and grinned at me. Gesturing to the seat next to him, I took the hint and walked over but didn't sit down; I was standing so he was directly to my left. I studied the man from my vantage point and fought back a sigh. How many business men have I dealt with within the last month? While this man was far more casual, wearing a black suit that wasn't made of silk and no tie, he was still dressed to show just how high up he was compared to the average scumbag.

"I see you're interested in Gutter, am I to expect little killers running around in the near future?" he asked with a sickeningly happy grin. I scoffed and crossed my arms, and put most of my weight on my right foot. I looked down at him coldly.

"If you had any sense you would see that we want to kill each other, not fuck each other. Now, are you going to let me compete? Or do I have to kill you too?" I asked impatiently. I wanted to get out as soon as possible, but I wasn't going to leave without getting something out of it, even if it was only a fight.

"I wouldn't be so crass if I were you" he said calmly, and I felt the barrel of a gun at my back. I turned my head slowly and saw a man I didn't know standing there, rifle against my back. How had he snuck up on me? Sighing at my lack of attentiveness, I turned back to the boss.

"Seriously?" I asked in a deadpanned, and slightly disbelieving, tone. Spinning around I knocked the gun away from my person before kicking him in the gut and sending him through the door. The boss guy stood up and looked at his doorway, as though wondering where the door went.

"Alright" the man recovered quickly, smiling excitedly at the prospect of another challenger. "The prize is a million belli" he said and I nodded, not really caring about the money, jumping down from the booth and into the pit. The body had been cleaned away, but Gutter had remained.

"Ready to die?" the man asked mockingly, I stared up at him before grinning.

"Been there, done that" I said finally, and then the bell went off to signal the start of the fight. The large man wasted no time, and rushed towards me like a runaway train. Ducking under his fist, I sidestepped but had to quickly change direction as he went for me again. I reminded myself that he wasn't some thug; he was an experienced killer who had deemed me his prey. As he made fast jabs at me, occasionally adding a kick, I mostly kept to dodging, trying to gauge any weak spots or gaps that I could take advantage of.

Suddenly his tempo changed, and I was sent into the wall with a devastating kick. Coughing from the dust, I managed to keep one eye open and managed to dodge a jab from the deadly talon-like weapon. Kicking off the wall, I emerged from the dust cloud and drove my knee into the man's face. I felt the cartilage crack, but not break. I frowned at that, how strong it must be to withstand an attack like that.

"_When a bone breaks, it becomes stronger in that area to avoid it breaking again"_

That's what my instructor had said when I once asked why the older students didn't seem so upset when something broke during fights. Could it be the same for cartilage? Probably, that would certainly explain why his nose didn't break. But this posed a new problem: chances are many of his bones have been broken over his years of service in the pit, so how am I supposed to gain the advantage here? I have speed, sure, but he was a tank. If I can't land any significant blows, I find my second life shorter than my first.

Landing a fair distance away from the mammoth of a man, I looked back as he held his nose in shock, as though he was surprised it had broken at all. I wouldn't be surprised at that, this had probably been the first time he had been actually hurt in a match in a long time. However, he didn't seem enraged or even perturbed by my somewhat successful attack, in anything he seemed happy. Then he began laughing, but this laugh sent shivers up my spine in trepidation. He was not sane. Not anymore.

"That's good. That was really good, girl. What's your name? I like to know the name of a good challenge" he said giddily. It would have sounded silly coming from anyone else, in a different situation, but not now. Now it just drove home the fact that this man had lost his mind a long time ago.

"You may call me traveller" I responded coolly, not wanting anyone to know my name. I didn't want people to start whispering it, whispering right to the government so they could put a bounty on me so soon. I don't need one now, not until I hit the Grand Line.

"Traveller…" Gutter said, as though testing the name, but then his eyes lit up "Traveller it is then!" and then he was running again, right towards me. I jumped out of the way, bending to avoid his scythe-like weapon once again. My mind raced to try and find a way to beat him. Breaking his bones to slow him down would be stupid, it wouldn't work with him, and there was no chance I could rupture something. His muscles would be strong, so there little chance I could cause him to pull or tear something. I flipped out of the way again, landing on my hands and pushing away to land on my feet and to give me some extra distance. The ground where I had been caved under his pressure and more dust and sand exploded into the air, making a little cloud. I dove out of the way of another attack, performing an army roll and landing in a crouched position. He came at me again, and I continued to avoid him.

My breaths were coming out shorter, and faster. I looked around and, with a surprised jolt, found that I couldn't see Gutter, or anyone else for that matter. It seemed as though the whole arena has been clouded in sand and dirt and dust, covering the air like a thick mist. I covered my mouth with the fabric of my jacket, not wanting to inhale any of this stuff. I could hear Gutter skulking about, he was surprisingly quiet but his size made it impossible to be truly silent. Me on the other hand…

Sifting silently through my new cover, nary a sound escaping from my lips as I steadied my breathing and I kept my movements minimal and light, making sure my cloths ruffled as little as possible and that my steps didn't disturb the sand at my feet. I continued like this until I was right behind Gutter as he continued to look through my rapidly clearing cover for me. I had to strike now if I wanted any chance of success. Using the first knuckle of my forefingers, I struck his spine half a dozen times. The giant man swung around and I managed to duck under his extended forearm.

Then he brought his knee up and slammed into my entire upper body, my head snapped back at the force as I went airborne. Knowing what was going to happen next, I fought the pain and disorientation and clumsily tried to manoeuvre myself in mid-air to avoid the oncoming attack. A sharp pain ripped through my right leg as I went flying into the arena wall once again, this time with a lot more force. Large chunks of debris fell with me. I hit the ground with a silent _'thump'_ but the loud crashes of the chunks of wall drowned out whatever sound I made. I forced myself to breathe even though my lungs protested the action; slowly I got into a kneeling position and tried to stand.

My right leg gave out under me and I returned to my kneeling position. Looking down in confusion I noted with a bit of horror that there was a tear going down the side of my leg, starting at the knee and going all the way down to the ankle. I didn't have time to cringe or worry, for my opponent was walk- no _stalking_ towards me. I saw the look in his eyes, and suddenly I felt like prey, wounded, tired, trapped _prey._ I felt my body shudder, but beyond that could not force my body to move as he slowly descended upon my prone form.

'_I can't die now, what have I accomplished? I can't die, I _won't_ die! Not here, not now, not again! I've already died once. Not again. I can win, I just need to get in that one hit. Just that one hit'_ my mind all but screamed. I squeezed my eyes shut, my right fist resting on the sand while my left arm lied across my good knee. I looked like I was kneeling to someone, pledging loyalty. I slowed my breathing and felt my heart slow as well, at first I thought I was dying, but with each beat of my heart I felt a heat pulse through my body.

_Ba-dum-thump_

Heat

_Ba-dum-thump_

Energy

_Ba-dum-thump_

Strength

_Ba-dum-thump_

_Power_

I opened my eyes and looked up at the man standing above me, his eyes that were full of bloodlust and a giddy sense of triumph morphed into one of confusion at curiosity as I stared up at him. I was no longer scared. I was no longer in pain, no longer paralysed. I felt strong, I felt empowered. I felt confident. My fiery gaze met his eyes and he took a step and raised his fist, bringing it down as fast as he could to end the match and kill me.

I was already gone.

I reappeared in a blur behind him, slightly above him, and he turned just in time for his cheek to meet my fist. He flew into the wall but recovered quickly, standing up he looked around wildly, trying to locate me. But I was gone once again, appearing and disappearing around him and striking him with blows that would kill most men, but only sent him careening through the air and crashing the already crumbling wall. My speed had increased to the point that it looked more like teleporting, my strength had tripled and my mind was clear of everything except the objective: beat him at any cost.

I moved right in front of him as he staggered forward, he had bruises and grazes and lacerations from my attacks and crashing into the wall. I jumped up and gave him a powerful uppercut, like me before him, his head snapped back and went airborne. I vanished, leaving only a small displacement of air to prove I had been there at all, and appeared behind and above him once again. This time, however, I struck out my palm and hit the top of his spine. There was a fast series of sharp cracks, and the world froze for a long time.

No one moved. No sound was made. We might as well have been carved from stone. As I landed silently on the blood littered sand, Gutters body made violent spasm and crashed to the ground like falling tree, but the sound was quieter than I expected. I turned to check if he was actually dead, then rose from my landing position, but did not move. Silence had been shocked through the crowd, and I dare not break it.

_Clap. Clap. Clap. Clap._

I looked up with veiled surprise at the sound, and saw the business man in the VIP booth standing there, clapping slowly. More people began clapping, and soon applause rippled through the battered room. People cheered and whistled, calling out and yelling. It was deafening, but there was a certain thrill and excitement that went through the crowd and I looked up at the crowd in wonder. My eyes trailing over the hundreds of faces, and then I was stunned again.

"_Traveller! Traveller! Traveller!"_ they began chanting, I just stood there as they cheered. Shocked into my own silence, after a few moments I realized that _I won._ It was the thrill of victory, the excitement from a good fight, the elated feeling of being _alive_. Slowly, I raised my hand to acknowledge their cheers, also because I have no idea what to do in this kind of situation, and that seemed to spur them on. A greater wave of cheers erupted like a violent wave from them. I tuned once again to the man who ran this fighting ring, and he nodded before turning to leave. I turned to one of the entrances and walked away from the ever insistent cheering of the crowd.

Now that my heart rate was normal again, that strength from before had long since vanished, and I was beginning to feel its effects. But I couldn't show weakness. I continued to walk until a guard found me and took me to the man, who held a briefcase that was no doubt full of my prize money. My hands remained in my pockets, to hide the fact that they were shaking, and kept my shoulders relaxed in an attempt to show confidence and not fatigue.

"That was quite an exquisite match, Traveller" the man said happily, placing the briefcase on the table between them and pushing it towards me. I raised a brow at him in suspicion. I had killed probably his best fighter, and he was happy? He took my gaze the wrong way, and gestured for one of his men to open the case.

"Don't worry, I wouldn't try and kill someone like you. That would be far too stupid. While Gutter was an excellent fighter, I'm afraid that he was scaring competitors out of the pit and only the money desperate would try their luck. But now I expect business to really boom, that is… if you don't plan on reinterring" he said almost warningly. I rolled my eyes and took the briefcase; this man truly was the worst. He didn't even care if someone died, as long as it brought him profit.

"I only fight against strong opponents" was my reply before I turned and left the room. As I went back into the crowd, planning on leaving the way I came, people began cheering again and parted so I could pass by unhindered. I exited the building and out into the cool night air, had I been in there for so long? I shrugged and headed back to the docks, seeing the old ship I had arrived on was still docked, I realized something with a start.

I had forgotten my backpack!

Quickly running to the ship, I completely ignored the gangplank and jumped onto the railing, looking around the vacant ship I stepped onto the deck. Turning sharply to where my cabin, I opened the door and found that my stuff had not been touched. Checking to make sure all my stuff was there, I relaxed and heaved the large pack onto my shoulders, not forgetting the briefcase I went into town and rented a room for one night in the nearest hotel. I didn't bother with the bed, instead I spread out my swag and blanket. Only then did my fatigue catch up with me, and when I lied down I was out like a light.

* * *

**Yeah... I had been listening to a few dark-ish songs that made me think of fighting. Sorry this one was a bit late! So, how do you think I went with this one? I'll try and post a happier chapter next. Thank you reading, and I hope you enjoyed it! See ya in two weeks (Probably...)**


	5. Borderline

**Still Alive! Sort of. School is evil, sometimes... and I'm lazy... anyways! Here's the next chapter, this ones extra long so I hope it makes up for the time it took for me to finish it. I do not own One Piece (Believe me, I've checked). Onwards and enjoy!**

* * *

Another month had passed; well it was a little more than a month but meh, technicalities. I was on a ship, heading away from the West Blue and towards the Red Line. _'Mainland'_ I thought. A sigh escaped my lips and I turned onto my side, the small ship I was on hadn't been able to spare me a cabin, so I was sharing with the crew. They hadn't offered me a hammock so I slept on my swag, and honestly I preferred it. Having a hammock would mean being surrounded by people, and I don't think I could handle that just yet.

I had killed a man. Truly killed him, I took his life and hadn't thought twice about it… until now. I had committed murder. It didn't matter if the man had deserved or not, or what my motives were or what his motives were. The fact stood clear, plain as day, that I had _killed_ someone. Sure, I knew that I would have to fight, and most likely take lives… but knowing and doing are two very, _very,_ different things. I turned again, this time facing the wall. I hadn't been sleeping properly ever since that island. Sure, I slept, but those nights were filled with images of blood and lifeless eyes. Sometimes mine, sometimes his, sometimes it was a complete strangers or a character from this world, and sometimes it was people from my old world. I shuddered at the images that crossed my mind's eye even when awake.

I shifted onto my back, staring at the ceiling. I had tucked myself in a corner of the room, and continued to contemplate what I had done. I stopped crying long ago. For the first three days I had cried, and cursed and hated myself. Then I had gotten over that, telling myself that crying would do nothing to change what was already done, but while my tears and self-inflicted hate had stopped, the nightmares had not. It seemed that even though I accepted what happened, I had not accepted what I had done. I couldn't get over it. It remained in my head.

'_The hard part isn't killing, it's what comes after'_ I thought to myself. I looked to my left, and observed the sleeping sailors in the room. Did they know they were sleeping amongst a killer? Were they killers too? I covered my eyes with one hand, and did my breathing exercises to calm me down. Now I was just being paranoid, and pessimistic.

"_You must find a way, to break down this door, then you'll find yourself in a brighter world" _I sang quietly, remembering the song and strangely enough it seemed relevant _"We're gonna change your mind. Look inside yourself and find hate, find fear. Your life is over here" _I continued to sing quietly, so quietly it was only a whisper.

Yes, I had killed a man. Yes, it could have been avoided. But what were the chances of successfully beating him without killing him? What good would have letting him live been? Yet I was filled with guilt, with shame, with a sense that this would happen again. I sat up and lent against the wall, grabbing my bag I took out the brown leather journal I had bought earlier. Taking a pen I started to write, write my thoughts and fears. What I regretted, what I didn't. I poured my soul and sorrows into the pages.

As I closed the book, I closed the door to my suffering. I felt lighter, I felt complete once more. I had killed a man, and while that wasn't okay, I was okay with it. I would have to kill again, but I would avoid it when I can, I would never enjoy killing. Winning? Yeah obviously, but never killing, I would never take pleasure in someone else's death.

This chapter of my life was over. It's about time I continued on.

Standing up, I decided to head above deck. For some reason I wasn't tired, but I ignored that and went on the deck. Taking in the early morning view, I inhaled deeply and enjoyed the cool salty air. In a few more months, my time in the Blues would be done, and I would be continuing on to the Grand Line and the New World.

I went over to the railing and sat on it, pulling up the fabric of my pants on my right leg. It had been over a month since I got my first wound in this world, besides the landslide, and this would mark my first scar since coming here. The scar was a jagged line of raised skin, at the moment the flesh was pink but I had no doubt that it would whiten soon enough. I traced the numb area, recalling the events after I had left the pit.

I couldn't believe I had forgotten about such a wound, I hadn't even limped when I had walked all the way to the hotel. Probably made me look like badass, I laughed a little at the sudden thought. When I had woken up, on the other hand… my swag and blanket had been covered in blood and my leg was on fire with pain throbbing with my heartbeat. I had thrown out the blanket and done my best to clean the swag, though it was still heavily stained. But before any of that I had snatched my first aid kit and done my best to tend to the wound, I had spent nearly an hour disinfecting it, stitching it properly and bandaging it with extra padding for the bleeding. Then I had been limping for the better half of my journey to the mainland. Even now, I still had jolts of ghost pains from the old wound. Shaking my head, I pulled the fabric over the scar and jumped back onto the deck, looking for something to do.

Going over to the rigging I climbed up to the sail and sat atop the wooden beam that kept the sail in place. It was a peaceful morning, and as people began to rise from slumber the mainland became visible from the horizon. I took a deep breath when I realised that I would be going to the South Blue next. I don't think I could avoid the soon-to-be Strawhats just yet. I hadn't seen anything in the newspapers or from my informants about any crew that fits the description that I knew by heart. I had a pretty good idea that this was before when Luffy set out and probably before Ace set out as well.

I helped out amongst the ship while we sailed towards land at full speed. Once we were on land I took my stuff, paid the captain a little extra, and left the docks and towards the laundrette. The ride here had taken _ages_ and the only clean clothes I had left were the ones I was wearing. Once I found a place, I immediately set about washing my clothes -most of them were either black or red, so I really didn't have to worry about mixing colours- and while I waited for them to dry, I went out to a bar to enjoy a meal and a drink.

Sitting down at a seat near the window, I checked the menu before making an order. My drink came first, it wasn't alcoholic but it was sweet. The door opened, but I ignored it because there were a bunch of people coming and going. But when the chatter of the bar instantly died down, I turned to see who could possibly illicit a response like that.

Now, I consider myself someone that wouldn't openly stare at anyone, but when one of your favourite characters in One Piece walks through the door then anyone would be hard pressed not to stare. I wondered how he ended up on the mainland, because I don't remember any part where he had been on the mainland before.

'_Probably got lost'_ I thought wryly as I watched the green haired male ignore everyone and walk over to the bartender and order something. I turned back to my meal and happily continued consuming it. I blinked when I saw a familiar green sash in my peripheral vision, looking up I swallowed and tilted my head at him.

"Mind if I sit with you?" Roronoa Zoro asked me, and I stared for another few seconds before nodding. He sat across from me, I took a sip of my drink, and I continued to stare at him. "What?" he asked finally, with no small amount of impatience.

"Just observing, I guess. I've never seen a swordsman with three swords before" I replied, though that was just a half-baked lie. I had seen him fight a bunch of times, and it was one of the most epic things ever. He smirked at me, but before a conversation could begin his food and drink came and we both returned to our respective meals.

"Hey" I said suddenly, he hummed in acknowledgment "Have you ever been disarmed?" I asked and he looked at me sharply, so I quickly amended my question "I mean, have you practiced countering disarming moves, not just by other swordsmen but by an unarmed opponent?" I said, and he gave a look that was more calculating and contemplative.

"No, I don't believe so" he gave me a grin "have you ever fought a swordsman?" he asked and I returned his grin.

"Only mediocre ones" I replied. We both finished out meals quickly and I paid for him, since he was broke, and we went to a clearing away from the village, after we picked up my clean and dry clothes. We didn't want to cause any unnecessary damage, after all. I rolled my shoulders and tested my leg, to make sure it wouldn't give out on me.

"Just so you know, I've hurt my leg and it's only just healed so I might be a bit weak on my right" he nodded his understanding and drew his blades, I took a stance and gestured for him to attack. Never in my life did I expect to run into one the Strawhats, even if they weren't in the crew yet, and couldn't help but feel excited.

Zoro came at me with a basic double cross slash; smiling at the move I avoided it by spinning to the side of him. As his arm extended out to the side to complete the failed attack, I used a few quick movements to force the sword on his left side out of his hand and into my own. I placed the broad side of the sword on his shoulder, showing that this move had the potential to be fatal. He smirked at me, and took his sword back. I nodded and jumped back for our training session to continue again.

I learned a lot as well. Zoro was kind enough to teach me some basic swordsmanship, and while I was good he commented I wouldn't be a master any time soon. I had agreed with a laugh wholeheartedly. I also learned the movements of a swordsman, and as we continued our friendly matches it had increasingly easier to analyse his movements and predict his attacks. He had learned how to counter disarming moves, both basic and advanced, so the fact we both got something out of it _besides_ a workout was a real plus.

We also developed this cool way of communicating without words but I digress.

By the end of the day, we were both exhausted, though Zoro did his best to look as unaffected as a man who went through several punches and kicks could. I, on the other hand, had no problem collapsing to the ground with a mix between a sigh a groan. I had a few superficial cuts -they still stung- as my own lessons for when I hadn't been paying as much attention as I should have been, or when I had left one side unguarded. Although he was more forgiving around my right side, considering that I had experienced some ghost pains.

"You're really strong" he commented, leaning against a nearby tree. I breathed out a laugh, still trying to refill my body with oxygen, and waved a hand to him in thanks.

"Not nearly strong enough, but I'll get there. You pretty tough yourself, but you've got a long way to go before you beat Mihawk" I commented, and Zoro gave me a sharp glare that also held a questioning undertone, so I explained. "It's every swordsman's dream to become the best, even if it's not their immediate goal they all fancy the idea. It's obvious, though, that it is your ambition to become the best of the best. We've both got a long way to go, myself more so" I finished, taking in a deep breath and letting it out slowly.

"What is your dream?" Zoro asked, sitting down next to me. Which surprised me, but I didn't show it. I looked up at him but eventually turned my eyes back to the darkening sky. My dream was even harder to achieve, since there isn't an actual title for 'Greatest Martial Artist' or anything like that.

"To be the best fighter, the greatest martial artist, someone who can never be beaten in hand-to-hand combat" I said finally, I felt his eyes on me and heard his chuckle. I smirked at his response, and lifted my hand to lightly tap my knuckles against his arm.

I'll translate: 'I'm sure you make it, eventually' –Zoro.

'Gee, thanks, you too' –me.

Yeah… that's how we communicate, mostly.

We decided to camp out here, and go our separate ways tomorrow. I set up the tent while Zoro got firewood; I made sure at all times he was always within immediate view. He started the fire and I cooked. We shared a tent and slept the night, and half the morning, away. We packed up and said our goodbyes before parting ways, it sounds quick and uneventful but considering that Zoro has never packed a tent before it was pretty funny. As the green haired swordsman walked away I watched him walk down the road, before he suddenly took a sharp left into the forest. Away from where he originally wanted to go. I tried to hide my laughter, but it came bursting out and I spent a good minutes just standing in the middle of the road laughing. I probably looked crazy.

God, how long has it been since I laughed?

Inhaling long and slow breaths until my lungs stopped hurting, I straightened up and watched were my training companion had been. The poor man had no idea who was going to end up being his captain. Many a time I had been tempted to mention Luffy and the rest of the crew but had withheld my voice from speaking, I would have to try and avoid the others lest I do or say something stupid.

Sighing at my own thoughts, I turned away and started walking. And walking, and walking, and _walking. _God, no wonder people prefer to sail! Nothing ever happens on land! At least you have the prospect of a storm, or fishing, or _something!_ Is there nothing to do on this insufferable strip of land that separates the Blues? Seriously, I might actually enjoy some bandits or something attacking me, just for something to do! Oh wait, there's no one here!

Note my sarcastic and unhappy thoughts.

I looked away from the road, and up towards the sky. I can see why people preferred the ocean compared to the land, and while the sights and smells were unique in their own right, nothing can beat the salty smell on the wind and the exhilaration of seeing something off in the distance. It could be anything! An island, a ship, a giant, a sea king, a storm, and more! Here on land, you were pretty restricted with what to expect. Trees, towns, roads, maybe a storm but beyond that… it was a constant, a dull and boring constant of never-changing normality.

My eyes followed a bird as it flew overhead, and continued to do so until it vanished beyond the tree-line to my right. I stared at the forest as I walked, I noticed the trees were tall and old, the branches thick and strong, and everything was close together, almost smothering in its closeness.

I bit my lip as a thought came to mind. I had always wanted to do it, and now that the limitations on reality were a lot looser here maybe I could. But what would it look like if I fell or couldn't even get up the tree? Shaking my head of those self-conscious and decidedly _unhelpful_ thoughts, I took a sharp right –not unlike was Zoro had done hours earlier- and entered the forest. I stopped when I was far enough away from the road, and stood in front of a mighty tree. Its branches were high and tangled amongst its neighbours; I couldn't see the sky from here even though little streams of light seeped through the thick canopy.

Shrugging off my pack, I took a readying breath and ran at the tree. Jumping off the ground and into the air, I angled myself so my feet hit the trees trunk, and pushed off the large structure. I wasn't anywhere near reaching the lower branches, and I huffed at my lack of height –even though that was a good thirty metres that I just scaled- before landing with nary a noise.

Going at it again, I jumped high into the air, kicked off the tree and towards another one. I must have looked like an ascending, zigzagging blur to any onlooker. Finally, I got high enough to grab one of the lower branches and then proceeded to swing myself up onto it. Landing lightly, I squatted and looked down. I was at least a hundred metres up, and now that I was up here the height of these sentient plants really struck me. How old must this forest be to have grown to such amazing heights?

'_Looks like the land isn't as dull as you originally thought'_ my mind retorted my earlier belief, and I chuckled before jumping over the edge. I didn't trust myself enough yet to fall a hundred metres and land without injury, so I did that zigzagging thing again to get down. Once I had secured my backpack onto my shoulders, I ascending into the lower branches of the tree tops and looked around.

It was so different being up here than it is to be on the forest floor. Looking up into the higher branches, my eyes caught a bird that was watching me. Perhaps it was curious as to why a human was up here in the canopy, when it had no wings to fly? I turned to the branch in front of me, only a few metres away. I tensed my legs, and like a released coil, sprung forward with a relaxed kind of familiarity with the movement.

I landed on the branch in a crouched position, still uncertain about what I was doing, but when I didn't lose my balance and didn't fall down I stood and jumped to the next branch. My pause was shorter than the last one, and my leap was more confident and less cautionary. I jumped from one branch to another and another and soon I was practically flying through the trees, my feet barely touched the platforms before I was soaring again. Going a dozen metres at a time, at least, before I kicked off a branch or a tree trunk. Sometimes I would use my hands to grab onto a branch and swing to my next destination whenever it became too enclosed to simply jump, or when I wanted to go to a higher level.

Needless to say, I had way more fun than simply walking, and I covered way more ground as well. I had a few slip ups, though, when I encountered some slippery _something_ on the trees but I recovered quickly enough. My feet suffered a bit, as I discovered when I found a town to stay at before it got too dark.

They had become really swollen, and some parts were bleeding. I had disinfected them and wrapped them in my remaining bandages, but knew I wouldn't be doing any strenuous activity for a while. Luckily, there was a group of travelling performers that had let me tag along. It had been fun, and they had really liked my stories of my adventures, however few they were.

In return for letting me ride with them, I had to help with some basic things and give them some tea recipes. Somehow I had found myself sitting with the older women, learning how to sew and repair clothing. It had been a bit of a bazar experience, considering I wasn't exactly all about delicacy, but I had learned a lot and had gotten pretty good at it.

When my feet had gotten better, they had been sad to see me leave, but with promises to write to each other I had left them in good spirits and good health. I gave my feet a few more days rest, with boring walking, before returning to my treetop travel and cutting off days of travel time. Only this time I had regular resting intervals, and checked my feet to make sure they were handling it. A few more towns and a few more camp-outs later I was on the other side.

I looked out to the expanse of ocean that greeted me, inhaled the salty air and enjoyed the warm sand under my feet. I just stared, just took in the beautiful sight and listened to the noises around me and- _ohmygodtheresacannonball!_

Ducking under the projectile, I looked back as it passed overhead, and watched at it tore through sand and trees in a shattering explosion. I heard distant screams, and realised I had exited the forest not far from a town, which, it just so happened, was being attacked by pirates… _great_.

"A moment of peace is just too much to ask, it seems" I said irritably, like some great wrong had been done to me. After deciding that, yes, I should help this poor town, took off at high speeds towards the town. Avoiding poorly aimed cannonballs the entire way.

When I arrived at the fishing town, I looked around the pathetically small plaza –when compared to the one back at the islands it _really_ was pathetically small- and noticed without a hint sympathy that everyone were either running around like headless chooks or completely hysterical. Even the Marines looked like they didn't know what to do, which was really sad. However, now that I looked at it with a non-condescending eye… it looked really funny.

I burst out laughing when a Marine tripped as he was running to the docks, stifling my laughter into chuckles I picked the man up by the scruff of his shirt before he could get trampled. My shoulders were still shaking, and I was struggling to keep my breathing steady, but no one could deny the broad I-am-silently-laughing-at-you grin that was stuck on my face.

"Need a little help there?" I asked when the Marine was steady. He was a good foot taller than me –no surprise there- and was darkly tanned. He looked down at me, a shocked look on his face. It took me a moment to realise he was surprised a _girl_ had lifted him up like he barely weigh anything, my grin quickly evaporated at that. I'm a wee bit defensive about that, in case you haven't noticed.

"Uh…" the man tried to speak, and I only sighed in response. Well, since he was clearly incompetent and unable to act, it looks like I would be getting in on the action. Stepping away from him, I gave him a mock-salute and an insulting grin.

"See ya in the fight then!" I crowed before leaping onto the rooftops and taking off at high speed towards the docks. I landed in front of a group of navy soldiers, and chortled at how they all jumped and exclaimed in surprise. Standing up from my landing position, I put crossed my arms in front of me and stared out at the pirate ship. I didn't recognise it Jolly Roger, and since it was targeting a fishing village then it couldn't be very tough. So, they were more bullies than real pirates. Well, that was disappointing, but they could have a few good fighters. Maybe one would be a Devil Fruit user?

"W-who are you?" one of the Marines called out when he had recovered. I blinked before turning my head to the group of men. I had completely forgotten they were there. Turning around to face them fully I gave them a grin and put my hands on my hips.

"Call me Traveller!" I exclaimed happily, like there wasn't a pirate ship behind me and a town suffering a barrage of artillery in front of me. They all gave me deadpanned and confused looks, probably wondering where this whacko had come from. I giggled at their looks.

A large explosion popped my ears, and I felt the docks vibrate violently under my bare feet. Turning to my right, where the sound had come from, and found wood and debris falling back to where a stack of crates had been. I tilted my head, as though wondering why those crates had randomly combusted.

"Oh yeah" I said, drawing out the 'oh' as I turned to face the ship. It had gotten closer, and now I could make out the crew running about, preparing to attack. "I had forgotten about them" I said simply, I smirk found its way onto my lips. I was itching for a good fight, and I'm hoping this one will be decent enough. Funny, how quickly I can become violent. I continued to watch them, and found myself getting a bit impatient.

Seriously, how long did it take to dock the bloody ship and raid the god damn town? Not that they would get the chance. I turned to the Marines once again, and poked the one closest to me.

"Oi, don't you guys have a ship or something?" I asked plainly, he looked to me in surprise before turning his fearful eyes back towards the approaching ship.

"We only have one, and it's supposed to be out on patrol" he explained, and I bit back a laugh. He sounded like he blamed the navy ship for missing the pirates. It was only one ship, if you wanted a better line of defence then you would need more than one ship.

Suddenly the men were readying their guns, and above the screams of terror I heard the triumphant sounds of men who believe they've already won. Looking behind me, I realised with no small amount of glee that the pirates and their ship was now within jumping distance. So, without any further ado I tensed my whole body and shot forward like a bullet on steroids. I crashed through the railing and my feet skidded against the wooden floorboards of the deck. I managed to stop myself from going any further by punching the mast, of course I broke it, it creaked and cracked before slowly tilting one way and began to fall, the ropes tethered to it snapped and it crashed loudly onto the helm. Luckily the guy manning the helm had managed to jump out of the way.

No one moved, they just looked between the mast and me with amazement and shock in their eyes. At first I thought it was because I was female, but then I realised I was still in the Blues, which meant not many people had the strength I had. I smiled sheepishly and stuck my hands in the pockets of my ever-present hoodie.

"Whoops" I said lamely, my grin still in place. It was then all hell broke loose, and about time too!

Everything happened at once. Shots were fired from both sides, men swarmed around me with the intent to maim and murder, but that didn't really work out for them. Most of them were down with one punch, or kick and none of them were fast enough to actually hit, let alone hurt me. It seemed as though this would be an uninteresting endeavour, I decided with a disappointed sigh. It was then the door to the captains' chambers was violently slammed open, I looked up and saw a man that was… hairy, really, _really_ hairy. Seriously, he had a beard, and his torso and limbs were covered in thick black strand of hair.

"What's going on?" he hollered, and his men cowered "What happened to the ship? And why hasn't the town been taken already?" he asked shrilly. I stared at him with a deadpanned expression; he wasn't very bright, apparently.

"W-we're in the process now, captain! We're just having some unexpected issues" one of the crewmembers said, giving me a pointed look. I didn't even try to look offended; I just smiled easily and clasped my hands behind my back, leaning on the balls of my heels. Looking like I didn't have a care in the world.

"A problem, is it? Huh, can't even take care of a little girl?" he asked mockingly, I continued to ignore the man and looked up as a tiny piece of debris floated down towards the deck. "Ha! I'll take care of this, step aside weaklings!" the man bellowed, and everyone on board –minus me- did exactly as he commanded. He strode towards me with loud, confident, steps and held his hand out to the side of him as though he was holding a ball.

I wasn't paying attention, I was thinking about what I should have for dinner. I was in the mood for some venison, but chicken sounded good as well. Hm… I guess if I don't find a ship to take me to the next island then I'll have-

My body moved before I registered what was happening. I dropped to the ground as something dark and round went flying towards me, it passed harmlessly overhead and crashed into the wall on the other side of the ship. What the hell? Was that a cannonball or something? I turned to see what the hell had been thrown only to see… what?

_What?_

A ball of spiky quills was protruding from the wall. Let me repeat this. A _ball_ of spiky _quills_ are protruding from the _wall. _So allow me to repeat my question.

_What?_

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_**Soooo?**_** How'd I do? Hope you enjoyed the writing, and the story. I understand it seemed a bit off on some bits, and I'm sorry for that. Next one should come up a little sooner. **

**Imma Out!**


	6. Devil Fruit?

**Eh... I'm not too sure about this chapter. I like it, but I think the ending could've been a bit more... I don't know. Also, the transition from fight to not fighting was a bit iffy to me. Oh well. I don't own One Piece (Much to my chagrin). Read and enjoy!**

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I did not move, did not speak, and I certainly _did not_ notice the hairy dude strutting towards me. Of course, only when his shadow eclipsed my form did I turn away from the... the _spiky_ _ball_. I was still in my ducking position, so I had to crane my neck to see the guys face. I could see, behind the monstrosity of a beard, his triumphant and decidedly arrogant smirk. I would have rolled my eyes but the situation really was just bizarre in its entirety.

"Impressed?" he more stated than asked.

"Curios and confused, actually" I replied, and he seemed to find this funny. Laughing loudly, he brandished his arm in front of his torso, holding it as though he was holding an invisible shield. The thick dark hairs on his arm grew in size and length. Their tips became sharp and pointy. I stared with a profound sense of interest, disturbed but I couldn't look away. When they were a sufficient size for him, he plucked one from his skin and another one emerged to take its place.

"I ate a Devil Fruit, the Quill-Quill Fruit. Now I can create these deadly spikes at will!" he said proudly, as though he had won a great prize. I suppose getting a Devil Fruit around here would seem pretty important, though I couldn't say the pros outweighed the cons. Unless he was already like that before he ate the fruit, then I'd say the effect weren't as dire. Still, the power did offer some serious advantages.

I stood slowly, and looked around. Everyone was watching, even the Marines –who were s_upposed_ to be taking care of the pirates- were frozen in their places. Sighing I took a step back and rolled my shoulders. Okay, so this guy was a Devil Fruit user, which meant that he was an anchor as well, and that this one seems to be a Paramecia type. Well, that was both good and bad, since I don't think I'm strong enough to handle a Logia class just yet.

"Thanks for the info. Now, I believe you were going to 'take care of me'" I said sardonically, to which his smirk grew. At least, I think it was a smirk, but I couldn't under that layer of hair on his face. He threw the spike he was holding, and I dodged it easily. I raised a brow at him but he didn't seem perturbed by my dodging skills and continued to throw his sharp quills at me, never once lightening his barrage. I was beginning to get bored, because _seriously_, weren't Devil Fruit users supposed to become stronger? Unless he only just gained his skill, but he seemed pretty adept at making them at will. Suddenly, another ball of sharp quills came flying my way. I jerked my head to the side, and one sharp spike grazed my cheek. Cutting skin but not flesh, leaving only a red line from under my left eye to my ear, the ball crashed into the stump of the mast and instead of just sticking there, it exploded.

I managed to manoeuvre my body to avoid most of the deadly spikes, but my left side still stabbed by at least a dozen of the little dark brown needles. I took a sharp inhale of breath at the pain. That had been unexpected. Dropping to one knee, I immediately set about the task of pulling them out of my legs and arm, but another barrage of the needle-like weapons hailed towards my form. I jumped out of the way, and performed a one-handed backflip to avoid being skewed by a third rain of spikes. I looked at where I had been, dozens of spikes stuck out of the wooden floors. More than he had been throwing before, I looked to the man and him preparing another bunch.

His entire body was covered, from head to toe, by the quills. They glinted sharply in the midday light, and I realised just how difficult it would be to beat this man. I was a close combat type of fighter, and if I wanted to land I hit I would potentially have to allow myself to become a pincushion. Despite my less than favourable odds, I found myself grinning excitedly. This was the kind of fight I was looking for!

As I dodged another attack of needles, I pulled out the sharp quills from my body. Blood seeped out of the tiny wounds at a steady pace, but not fast enough to be concerning. As the attacks continued, I edged closer and closer, avoiding the sharp projectiles with flexibility that only a woman can procure. Finally, I entered my range for attack.

Moving at a speed the untrained eye couldn't follow I appeared behind the captain and gave a powerful punch to his back. I missed his spine by centimetres, but I was sure he felt it. He crashed into the wall of his quarters and went through it, pushing up dust and debris. I landed softly on the ground, and spun around playfully with my arms out.

"Miss me, miss me, you can't hit me" I sung playfully, laughing at my own creativity. I jumped into the air quickly, the place I had been now littered with the deadly quills. The captain stumbled out of the hole he created, which was crudely shaped like him I realised with a giggle, and growled at me. He was covered in minor scratches and grazes, but I'm pretty sure I hurt his pride more than his body.

"You bitch" he spat, and I leant back on my heels again, one foot behind the other, and vainly tried to hide my giggles behind my fingers.

"I think you hit your head there" I quipped through my giggles "Because my species is definitely not of the canine variety, contrary to common belief. But whatever floats your boat" I shrugged, finally getting over my giggles and now looking completely relaxed. Some of the men around me looked a little irked by that, or by what I said, but I ignored them. They were no fun.

"I'll kill you" he said, and I rolled my eyes and smirked at him.

"I thought you were going to take care of me?" I said in mock-innocence. This only pissed him off and he ran forward, his body hair sticking up as they turned into those sharp spikes. It dived out of the way as he barrelled into what was left of the mast and smashed it to pieces. I winced at the prospect of that being me. I jumped out of the way again as he came towards me again, I couldn't get close to him like this. Every inch of his body was protected by the quills, even his face was covered! It was crazy. As I dodged another close call, I reluctantly accepted what I had to do.

This was gonna hurt.

I stood where the ground was flat and clear of spikes, and turned to my angry assailant. My knees bent, one leg behind the other, my body was side-on with my left facing my opponent. My right fist was rightly closed and raised to the waist. My left palm was facing my rushing opponent in a 'halt' position, the elbow slightly bent and my back straight with my shoulder squared. Body tense and ready, with my hard eyes trained on my target with firm expression set on my features.

He was upon me!

I pushed my legs, and shot my fist with all my power while retracting my left hand quickly. The effect was instantaneous. Pain shot through my right hand, spikes piercing the flesh and bone, and my shoulder and side was pierced by the longer needle-like quills. Luckily my legs weren't affected, since the angle and position of both of us kept the spikes from reaching that low. Time seemed to slow from there, from the impact of my fist the man's warped and moved back before his spiked body followed. Then time resumed its usual speed and the man vaulted from me, a burst of displaced air acted like a mini shockwave as he broke the sound-barrier, and became nothing more than a big brown blur as he zoomed from the ship, through the buildings of the town, and finally came to a stop a hundred or so metres into the tree-line.

A huge cloud of dust and debris followed his path, and some of the less sturdy buildings began to crumble and fall. I was panting from my position, fist still extended and body tense. That power really had the potential to be devastating, and I had to admit it wasn't as lame as it first appeared to be. I relaxed my body and retracted my arm, and began pulling out the pikes that had lodged themselves in my body. I didn't want to even look at my right hand, already knowing it would be a bloody mess. I couldn't just do a simple patch up job with this, I would have to get a professional to take a look at it, and hopefully fix it.

Everyone was frozen, amazed that this slip of a girl had beaten such a dangerous man. He wasn't really dangerous, I realised with a scoff, not to someone who was truly powerful. Sure, to them he was dangerous, but not truly dangerous that he could make it in the Grand Line. And I had managed to beat him with relative ease.

'_But at a price. I'm bleeding pretty badly now, and I could irreparably damage my hand. I beat him easily, but at a price. I could have finished that fight before it came to this. If I had just hit his spine, he would've been out of the fight instantly'_ I thought angrily to myself.

'_And he would've been dead'_ my mind shot back. I took a sharp breath at that paralysing epiphany. Now that I thought back on the fight, I had clearly been able to do it. To hit his spine with my bone-breaking punch, and end him right then and there.

But I hadn't. At the time, during the fight, I hadn't thought anything of it, just absently categorised it as bad aim and continued on, but now that I _did_ think on it… my eyes had been on his spine, but my fist had veered off course. Even though I had come to terms with the fact I would be killing, I still couldn't do it. My subconscious, maybe my conscience, wouldn't allow me to outright kill someone. But I hadn't been thinking of killing him, just beating him, only being victorious. Maybe if I had consciously known what my attack would've done to him, I would have hit my mark.

I barked out a breathless, silent, laugh at the thought. It was like I was programmed with an inability to accidently kill, unless I was making the conscious decision to end another's life, I wouldn't be able to end their lives.

'_At least'_ I thought as I looked to the mess I caused _'not on purpose'_ I let my shoulders sag as the adrenalin begun to wear off. But I was still giddy from my win. But my mind was still thinking on the implications of my train of thought, and my memory returned to the pit. How I hadn't felt anything, my body moved and my mind thought of just one thing: Winning, beating, surviving. I hadn't consciously killed him, but I had known what it would do… if that makes sense.

Shaking my head from those memories, I limped to the railing –or what was left of it- and jumped off the ship and onto the docks. I turned to the nearest navy personnel, who looked to be the captain, and I nodded my head towards the town.

"Is there a hospital or something here?" I asked, and he snapped out of his shocked trance. He nodded vigorously and yelled for some of his men to take me to the hospital. I sweat-dropped at this, I didn't need an entire escort, just directions. Sighing in resignation, I began to walk with the Marines into the town. I tried to hide my limping as best as I could, my left leg was hurting real bad. You know that muscles deep pain you get after having needle injections? Yeah, it was like that, only worse. It felt like someone had stuck a dozen needles in my leg, jostled them about a bit, before pulling them out, which wasn't too far from the truth, if I thought about it.

One of the Marines had offered to carry me, but I had refused. I had suffered worse, far worse. I had suffered the inability to breathe, the weight of the earth pressing down on my form, the pain of bones breaking from that weight and my insides folding in on themselves. All that pain and I couldn't even scream, I didn't have the air nor the space for it.

But that had only lasted for a moment, before Death had mercifully taken me away into the abyss. He gave me a mission and then sent me back to the land of the living, but in a different world. I had been buried again, but it hadn't been as bad. I remember how the pressure had been lighter, more bearable, and how my bones hadn't suffered as badly and my organs hadn't suffered any major damage. The rules of the world were different here, and that allowed me to live. It gave me strength, more than I would've ever gotten back at my old world.

One a happier note, and one far less brooding, we reached the hospital! The doctors only had to take one look at me before everyone went into a panicked frenzy. A nurse actually fainted! That had been funny, seriously funny, I had laughed despite everything when she collapsed. I think everyone thinks I'm crazy, and I probably am. Right now at least. My mind and emotions have been through a rollercoaster and it's really beginning to take its toll. I had been ushered into a white room, into a white bed, and then stuck with an actual needle filled with some sort of painkiller. It was relieving, to say the least, and a serious sleeping drug. I was knocked out cold within minutes.

Morning had been eventful. I had woken up, groggy and slow from the drugs affects, and had almost completely forgotten about my fight. That was until I tried to move my body. Fortunately, the drugs were still mostly in effect, and I only felt a tingling sensation around where I knew I should be feeling pain. It was like a misty veil, obscuring the vivid details from my senses and keeping my nerves clouded in a hazy sensation.

The nurse, not the one who fainted, that had been present had jumped when she heard me wake. I'm not sure what sound I made, I had been so out of it, and by the time I registered that someone had even been in the room I was alone. I tried to move, but the motions were slow and mostly unresponsive. I was beginning to hate sedatives; they made it so hard for the body to obey my brains commands.

When the doctor and two nurses, the one that had been here when I woke up, came into my room I had mostly gained my bearings and remembered how I ended up here. I blearily registered one of the nurses were checking my vitals, clipboard in hand, while the other two occupants were in a heated and fast-paced discussion. When it finally ended, the doctor turned to me. He was a handsome man, all dark hair and dark eyes with olive skin that was a stark contrast to the bland white room.

"Do you remember how you got here?" he asked, I forced my head to nod. I didn't trust my voice to actually make noise just yet. The man mimicked my motion, it being faster and smoother than my bobbing movement, but I blame the drugs on that.

"Do you remember anything before that?" he asked, and I wondered why he was asking me these questions. My head hadn't been hit, as far as I knew, during the fight. I tried to move, but the nurses were at my sides in an instant and pushing me back down. With them and the drugs still going through me, I couldn't put up much of a fight. I went back down, but one of the nurses had been nice enough to adjust the angle of my bed so I was sitting up. It was then I saw the nurses' clipboard, and more importantly, some very familiar paperwork.

It was a copy of my medical records.

So they knew about my 'mild case of amnesia', my mind slowly concluded. God, I hated how slow I was. It was kind of standard procedure, to have the medical records of the patient. Duh, aren't I a clever drugged-up fighter?

"Yeah…" I said slowly, answering his earlier question. He nodded and the nurse with my info wrote something down. I shook my head, trying to get rid of the fog that was in my mind, it was hard to think clearly and I hated it. Half the reason I was alive was because of my quick mind, and not having that made me uncomfortable. I shifted in my bed, though it was more a very long chair, and all personnel in the room were looking at me again.

"Okay now… miss" he said carefully, and warning bells went off in the back of my mind, but they were so far away they were practically drowned out by the hazy static of my brain "Can you tell us your name?"

And suddenly that cloud went 'toodle-oo' and my mind was abuzz with questions. Why did he need to know my name? Why does this make me uncomfortable? What was wrong with this situation? Something's wrong, something's wrong, something's wrong…

But my mind was still slow, and even as these thoughts were going through my mind I could barely consciously register them. I opened my mouth, intent on answering the man, when my medical file came up in my mind's eye and my mouth snapped shut with an audible click. Something isn't right here. What was it? Then it hit me like a ton of bricks God had just so kindly decided to drop on my unsuspecting person.

Metaphorically of course, I don't think God would mess with someone so directly.

My eyes shot to the medical records that the nurse still held, and my eyes went straight to where my name should be. I stared at it for several seconds, trying to process it and figure out how it happened. The doctor and nurses took notice of my apparent riveted interest in the clipboard and the kind nurse moved away from me, so I couldn't see my medical file. My eyes didn't follow, but my mind finally seemed to catch up.

'_Maria you sly she-devil'_ I thought fondly, fighting a knowing smile. Maria did have a habit of interfering, but right now I couldn't be more grateful for the woman. Except for when she taught me how to make herbal teas, there was no way anyone could top that.

What was on the paper you ask? Oh, that was simple, childishly simple really. And a slightly childish, because it is what I had been calling myself since I set out.

"Traveller" I said with an all too innocent smile.

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**So what do you think? R&amp;R or just enjoy, whichever really. Hope you enjoyed this one, and tell me what you think! Anything I could improve on? See ya on the next episode!**


	7. Conversations

**Before you kill me, know that I haven't figured out how to post stories from the spirit world! I know this has taken forever, but I've battled with every authors greatest foe the Blocker of Writing! We duelled long and hard, but victory was mine! Then after that... school, school trips, snow, pain (you really wouldn't think snow was painful to land on, but it is) and a sick friend. Took a while, but I've finally gotten around to it, this is a bit short I'll admit, but the next one will be longer!**

**Enjoy *hides under blanket***

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"So you really beat that pirate captain?"

"Yes"

"How?"

"I gave him tea and biscuits"

"Really?"

"No"

"Please be serious about this"

"I'm seriously contemplating throwing you out my window"

"…"

"Next question?"

"How did you defeat the pirate captain?"

"Do you even know his name?"

"We're working on that, now please answer the question"

"I punched him through several buildings"

"Really? And how did you accomplish that?"

I inhaled deeply, trying to calm my nerves, and rubbed my temple to try and stave off the coming headache. Exhaling slowly, I looked at the reporter. He looked very prim, with a freshly ironed suit that was somewhere around the light blue-grey area, and has been asking me questions for the last thirty minutes.

"Sure as hell not by asking stupid questions" I shot after a few seconds, now normally I'm a patient person but this guy has been just a few notches above condescending for the entire 'interview'. I'm pretty sure more than half the town is disbelieving about what had transpired at the docks, that a _little girl_ had beaten a pirate captain with a Devil Fruit power.

"Miss, I am trying to be civil"

"No you're not. You don't even believe that I was even at the bloody docks; you're just trying to get me to say something that points towards me being a liar" I glared, and he took a sharp breath, clearly not expecting me to be so upfront about it. I knew that this man wasn't the type to put 'women' and 'strong' in the same sentence unless 'are not' was in between. How? It was simply how he talked to me, how dismissive he was of the nurses, and how no matter what he didn't seem to believe that I had put that man through all those buildings.

"People are calling you Traveller, correct?" he said, completely ignoring my accusation. So he either was a very mature man or a serious misogynist, or maybe I'm just being very biased because I hate him.

"I wouldn't know, I have been couped in here for three days" I replied honestly. He nodded and wrote that down in his notebook. I sighed and lent back against the wall, it was cold and a wonderful distraction to the fact that I hadn't been outside in days. After being outside and traveling for months now, I have developed a strong dislike for being indoors for copious amounts of time.

"I see, and how has your recovery been?"

"I should've been out of here yesterday" I said after a long moment, staring out of my window. I wondered if they had found my pack yet. I had left it at the beach, before the pirate attack, when I was enjoying the view. I have a really bad habit of forgetting that thing.

"I see, and why did you decide to join the fight against the pirates?" he asked, though I could hear the _'even though you're a girl'_ part that was left unsaid. I turned to him with a serious and seldom expression, as though I was going to impart him with a great secret.

"Shits and giggles" I said finally, a careless shrug accompanying my admission. The man seemed to choke on air, and coughed violently, almost sending him out of his chair. He looked up in surprise, and I just gave him a grin.

"Well, not that this hasn't been fun but I have to be going" I said and threw the blankets off my legs; it was nice to see my legs without a magnitude of bandages covering them, even though my left leg did have a few. Startled, the reporter stood and kind of blankly stared at me as I went to the window and opened its glass frame. Inhaling the fresh, salty air I looked at the view like a king might look about a happy kingdom.

Okay, enough stalling, I have chaos and havoc to create and one wayward backpack to find!

"Alley-oop!" I cheered happily as I swung out of the window, feet first, and plummeted the distance of three stories from my hospital room. Landing lightly on a nearby roof, I looked up to see the reporter staring in complete shock at my little jump. I waved to him happily, before turning around and heading to the beach. Jumping from roof to roof, sometimes using streetlights, to traverse easily compared to the traffic of people below. I wasn't going at top speed, but I was going fast enough that the people here wouldn't realise I had passed overhead until I was already gone.

I reached the beach where I had been before the pirate attack, and looked around for my pack. I had been forced into a hospital gown, and they refused to let me change until they knew my hand was perfectly fine. Which it was, mostly, considering it had only been three days and my right hand was still firmly wrapped in bandages, but I could still feel it, so that was good. But all I wanted right now was to wear some comfortable clothes, so it makes perfect sense to run away from the hospital and go looking for a missing backpack.

"Not missing anymore" I muttered to myself as I spied the rather familiar object peeking out from the tree line. Looking back to the town, and then to my bag, and back again a few more time.

"No wonder they didn't find my pack!" I yell, throwing my hands up in exasperation and instantly regretting it. My shoulder had been pierced as well, but it hadn't been as bad as my hand, so moving it like that reminded me of that particular wound. Slowly returning my arms to my side, I looked down at the injury and grimaced at the dark dot of blood that was quickly growing into a blotch. Sighing to myself, I quickly went over to my bag and pulled out the last of my bandages.

Taking off the hospital gown, I sat on a large root –in nothing but my sports bra and undies- and began to unwrap and rewrap my shoulder. Adding in my disinfectant, of course, and once that was done I inspected my work. I don't know if it was a good thing that I was getting better at this, but I suppose it's a good skill to have for my particular occupation.

Remembering that I was in nothing more than my underwear, I grabbed some black biker shorts and slipped them on. They stopped just above my knees, and I looked down at myself. Black sports bra, bandages covering my left leg, left arm, right shoulder and right hand. I sat down on the root again, and just stared out into the expanse of the ocean. It was so peaceful here, now that everything had calmed down, but I had been here too long. I had to leave if I wanted to meet my deadline. I was planning on getting to the Grand Line before the year is out, and I only had a few more months to do that. While normally that wouldn't be an issue, I still had to travel and get informants and continue to develop my spy network in this Blue and then East Blue. And that would take time, time I couldn't waste here.

I sighed and lent my undamaged shoulder against the tree, laid my arms on my lap, and just continued to stare out at the ocean. I knew I would have to leave soon, but for just this short amount of time… I would like to stay still, and experience a little bit of the peace that I will be living without for a long while now. No worries, no thoughts of the future, no fears, no doubts and no concerns for what must come and happen. Just admiration for the view, allowing time to pass idly by as the world continues on unhindered by me.

I didn't react when I heard a figure approach, but when that single set of footsteps developed into many I cast my eyes sideways, not moving my head. I saw a Marine's ship, and a larger one behind that one. Was that why they didn't let me leave the hospital? They wanted it to be easy for the Navy to find me? It doesn't matter, now. I turned my sights back to sand and sea, ignoring the group of people behind me.

"Excuse me miss?" a masculine voice said behind me. Looking back, all I saw were legs so I looked up and lazily stared at the Marine. He looked middle-aged, and wore a large white coat that hung off his shoulders like a cape.

"Yes?" I asked quietly, trying not to disrupt the peaceful spell that had settled over me.

"Are you the person the townsfolk are calling Traveller?" he asked, I sighed and turned back to my view. For a moment I contemplated ignoring the men behind me, but knew that would only lead to unnecessary troubles.

"I suppose I am" I replied, somewhat vaguely. The man sat down next to me, though I made no move to acknowledge the act, I was pretty mellow about the whole thing. The marine, who had to be of a high rank to wear the 'Justice Cape' as I call it, seemed unperturbed by my odd mood and spoke normally but it seemed loud in the calm silence.

"I was led to believe you were still at the hospital, imagine my surprise when I only found an empty bed and a disgruntled reporter" he said, and I couldn't help but laugh somewhat sheepishly when the words actually registered.

"Ah…" I started, rubbing the back of my neck "Well, I was bored and the reporter was an ass so… I decided to join the search for my pack" I said, patting the large bag propped up against the tree. The man smiled and nodded, his men seemed to relax and started to mill about. Finding places to sit that weren't obtrusive but close enough to listen in.

"I see. Well, you can understand peoples scepticism when they're told some random girl managed to beat someone twice her size" he said as gently as he could. While it seemed as though he didn't have any trouble believing I had beaten him, he made it clear that others would. I scoffed at that and crossed my arm, shifting so my back was against the tree and I was facing the Marine with a raised eyebrow.

"I beat a man thrice my size not too long ago" I announced, not bothering to mention the scar that would prove it. I had nothing to gain from their acknowledgement, and it might even be better for them to underestimate me.

I quickly realised that plan wouldn't work, what with my little escapade a few days ago.

"I… see" the man said slowly, his brow furrowed with thought. "You wouldn't happen to be that girl who went to an inn, bleeding heavily from a wound on her leg?" he said it like a question, but it was more a statement. I blinked in surprise at him, how had he known that? In fact, why would the Navy find that the least bit interesting?

"It was a disturbance that I had been asked to look into some months back, since this woman had appeared out of the blue and vanished into the Ring only to reappear with a leg wound. It didn't amount to much though, and we quickly moved on. Didn't expect to find you here, Traveller" he greeted me as though one would greet an old friend. It appeared he could garner the reason for my confusion, so he was sharp minded.

"Oh… um, yeah… that was me" I said, a little thrown by the whole situation. Because really, what are the odds? I didn't even know that was investigated, nor did I have any clue where this… conversation would lead, but whatever I might've expected, this sure as hell wasn't it.

"How's your leg?" he asked, and I gestured to the scar, the raised skin had finally settled and now was a pale colour with some of the jagged edges forever pink. The ghost pains had stopped, now that I thought about it, and for all that I tried to stay in my serene mood, the face the man was making really just made me tumble into a fit of giggles.

"Wow, you look like a kicked puppy!" I managed between my breaths, and when I could breathe again I looked up to see not only the captain but everyone else present giving me a rather odd look. I sighed and rolled my eyes and replied with a quick "How can I blame you if you weren't the cause?" and then stood smoothly, showing just how healed and perfectly fine I was. "Now, is there a reason you went hunting for me?" at my inquiry the captain stood and cleared his throat.

"Yes, actually, I do have a reason for looking for you. You see, news of your… actions have reached some of my superiors and they would like your help in solving a problem that has started in the East Blue" he announced. I stared at him.

What?

Just… just_ what?_

"Don't you have actual Marines to do that?" I blurted, completely thrown by this guy. He nodded as though he expected the question, and he probably did, and looked out to the ocean.

"Yes, but something is happening in the Grand Line and the East Blue is notorious for being the weakest of the Blues, so we don't have the manpower to deal with the situation. A situation that we want dealt with before it can escalate" he explained, and I gave him a more considering look. He was tanned, had blood red hair that went a little passed his shoulders… actually looked really strong, and he had to be to wear that cape of his, but he looked… sharp, mentally I mean, like he could look at a situation and make a plan and a hundred contingency plans as he went. That kind of guy is far more dangerous than any brute, and with his physical strength as well, he'll go far in his career.

"I'm not going to join the Marines you know" he nodded "And for your sake this should be classified, because you may in fact get in trouble for this one day" I got an odd look for my words, but he nodded again. I took a deep breath, and sighed "What's the situation"

And like that, I found myself on a Navy ship heading for the East Blue with the intent of stopping some pirates that have begun taking over the islands there. Though at my request we would be stopping at a few islands so I can at least have _some_ eyes and ears in the South Blue, but it would less than the North and West Blues. Still, it was better than nothing, and I suspected that the East Blue would have even less, mostly because of all the Strawhats-that-were-yet-to-become-Strawhat-pirates that were there.

I sighed at my thoughts, staring down at the water as I leaned against the railing near the front of the ship. What was it called, the bow? Yeah, and the end is the stern. Hey, look at me, being all knowledgeable and stuff!

…I think I'll just stick to martial arts and tea.

"Speaking of which" I pushed off the railing and went to my cabin, and pulled out my tea-making set. Pulling out my remaining ingredients, I endeavoured to make some of my special blends. Mostly pain soothers and sleeping brews, and I made a salve to stave off infections. Geez, I almost felt like a medic. Is this how Chopper feels all the time? Well, as long as he enjoys it I suppose.

It only took a few weeks to get out of the South Blue and into the East Blue, and I had managed to scrape together a semi-decent network. Still, if I had more time I could've gotten something more thorough.

It would have to do.

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**You can practically _see_ where I stopped and restarted... jeez... **

**Anyway! Hope you enjoyed this chapter, and I've nearly finished the next chapter and should be posting it soon!**

**I'm outta here!**


	8. East Blue

**IF YOU HAVEN'T READ THE LAST CHAPTER _CONVERSATIONS_ GO BACK AND READ IT! Ahem! Now, this chapter may or may not be longer, but it has more stuff happening in it and hopefully will not disappoint.**

**R&amp;E Everybody!**

* * *

The East Blue was… well, I could definitely see why it was considered the weakest of the Blues. It was just so… quaint. Not that that's a bad thing, it's actually rather nice to see a place mostly untouched by war and hardship, for there to be a place so peaceful in this otherwise chaotic world was comforting. Maybe I could scrounge myself a holiday home or something. I laughed quietly to myself at that thought; I'll probably never end up using it, considering how busy I'll be.

Again, we stopped at towns so I could gather Intel and they could resupply. Though they didn't know I was actually building up a spy network, I just said I made tea as a hobby or that I wanted to buy something or wanted to explore. The Marines also took it as a chance to gather information about those 'pirate conquerors' and to just generally make sure the towns were safe and sound. I had to admit, while the Navy was corrupted at its core, these smaller factions truly were intending to take care of others and do their duty as protectors of the sea. If only the higher-ups were as pure intentioned as their subordinates, then the world truly would be a better place.

Weeks passed by quickly, as we slowly began to stop less and picked up speed as we headed to our destination. I found myself sitting on the sails more and more as I watched the horizon, waiting for an island to appear. Waiting for the signal to prepare for battle, to fight the pirates that were attacking the peaceful islands, though it wasn't the fact that they were pirates or that they were attacking the innocent, it was the idea that this could have been The Islands that were being attacked. It could have been Maria and Boris that could have their island raided, that their peaceful home could be pillaged and burned and nothing left but bodies and ashes. That is mostly the reason why I was helping the Marines in this endeavour, waiting for a burning island at the horizon.

I didn't see the island first.

A yell woke me from the sleep I had drifted into, the night had come and gone, and a red dawn greeted my first waking moments. I had fallen asleep on the sails, it seemed, and I would have found this funny if a giant column of bulging black smoke wasn't billowing up into the sky, its source hidden by the horizon. We were finally here, and it seemed far worse than anyone had feared.

Dropping down from the high sails and landing with a loud _thump_ on the deck, the sailors running around me in an oddly organised chaos. They were different from the islanders from before, each person knew what they had to do and where to go. I didn't have a place here.

Weaving through the crowd with ease, I made my way to the captain who was barking orders and standing tall where everyone can see him. At first I thought this was because he was posturing like a peacock or something, but then I wondered if he was acting more like a beacon of courage for his men. A fixed point, an anchor to keep them calm and determined, and as I reached the man I realised that it was probably true.

"Orders, Captain?" I asked, and the redheaded man looked to me. His gaze was cool and calculated, calm and determined. If he was an enemy I would be a bit disturbed and wary of that look, but as it was I just stood there, back straight and eyes just as steely as his.

"You'll be our first strike, break up their ranks and scatter their forces" he said, and my hard look melted into one of mischievous delight.

"Confusion and chaos" I grinned "got it" and practically hopped away to the bow. The idea of fighting was exciting, but the fact that I'll able to blast through a bunch of people and get to have as much fun as I wanted? Oh, this was a good day.

At the front, I could see better at the events that were occurring. Three pirate ships, all bearing the same Jolly Roger, were surrounding the docks. Two were actually docked and were looking mostly empty, while the last one was farther out and blasting the town with canon fire. Well, the first ship wasn't my problem, I would assume, considering that I could hear someone yelling to ready the canons.

The enemy ship noticed us, and immediately set about turning around to blast us with canon fire. I was about to yell to prepare for enemy fire, when the sound of canon-fire reached my ears, followed closely behind by a dark mass traversing at high speed right for my face.

I couldn't help but feel a sense of déjà vu as I ducked under the canon ball, it crashed into the elevated rooms that were near the stern, and several more accompanied it. I looked up when there was a ceasefire, and found us a lot closer than before. I could see the pirates scurrying about their ship, reloading their canons and preparing for a confrontation with the Navy vessel.

The two ships lined up, parallel to each other, I could hear everything yet nothing at the same time. I heard sounds but didn't register them, and time seemed to slow down for an agonisingly long moment.

"Fire!" the captain yelled at the top of his lungs, it was chorused by the captain of the enemy ship. Then the world resumed as normal, and a million things happened at once.

The world exploded into a chaotic mess of smoke, the flash of a canon, dust and debris practically floating in the air, the ring of swords and the crack of guns. I coughed and stumbled as the floor beneath me shook, kneeling to keep my balance; I put my sleeve to my face in an attempt to keep myself from inhaling too much, and looked through the smoke and chaos.

Both ships had boarded each other, Marines fighting on the pirate's ship and pirates fighting on the Marines ship. I looked for the captain, but couldn't catch a flash of red in this mess. I looked to the town, and through the mess I could make out tiny figures heading to the other two ships moored at the docks. There was no chance of this vessel surviving an onslaught from three ships, I had to stop them from setting sail.

How? Everyone was busy fighting for their lives, there's no way I could jump that distance, and last I checked I couldn't walk on water! How could I keep those ships from-?

Wait a Rosgobel rabbits pace!

I looked down at the water, then back up to the ships, back down at the water and up to the ships. I did this a few more times, a grin slowly spreading on my face as I did. Jumping onto the railing I looked back at the men fighting, then to the ships, and frowned. What if this didn't work?

I shrugged, at least no one could say I didn't try, and with that final thought, jumped off the edge.

Now, we all know that if you hit water at a certain speed, it's like hitting concrete because the water cannot 'move' around you that quickly. What I was trying to do is take that same logic and implement in my insane plan. What is that plan, may you ask? Yes you may, and that plan is simple.

I am going to walk on water.

Or at least push off it with amazing speed and force, whichever your preference to an explanation.

I was moving before I knew I was. My foot hit the water as hard as it could, then I was moving so fast I could barely register what went past me. Not that I could actually tell what was going past me, considering everything was just one giant blur of colour. Gritting my teeth, I slammed a foot in front of me, and came very near to a sudden stop. I kicked up an insane amount of water and continued to move for a metre or two before I slowed down enough to kick off the water again and be sent whizzing in the opposite direction.

'_This is harder than originally believed'_ I thought, breathless and trying to keep the air _in_ my lungs. I looked back and found myself on a one way trip towards the bow of the Marines ship. God dammit, this isn't getting any easier for me. Kicking out in a more diagonal direction, I went careening off to the side.

'_Just like driving a car'_ I thought sarcastically, and drove my feet into the water. Once again, when I had slowly down enough, and kicked up a fantastic spray of water several of metres high, I pushed myself forward but this time moved in a zigzag pattern. I would have heaved a sigh of relief if I could _breathe_. It was so much easier to move and control where I was going by going zigzag, and now I was moving towards the ships almost faster than I could register.

When I got close enough to the docks, I dug my feet into the water and forced myself to slow down, and then I did a weird kick-jump thing to get onto the docks, where I stumbled forward from both the left over momentum and the sensation of being on solid ground again.

"Ha, ha, ah… phew!" I breathed, a little out of breath. Putting my hands on my knees I looked back to the ships duking it out in the distance, and then back to the docks under my feet. I looked back again, and nodded a little as I looked back down at my feet "Right" I heaved, standing straight and clapping my hands once "Back to work"

I turned to the two ships that looked just about ready to disembark and head out to aid their fellow ship. Well, that just wasn't acceptable. Oh, but how am I to stop two ships? Hm…

A grin a little on the manic side bloomed on my lips, before it turned a little more sinister as I jumped up onto the deck of the closest pirate ship. The men paused and stumbled, surprised and probably a little scared at my sudden arrival. Ignoring them completely, since I didn't have time to joke about like normal, I shot to the main mast and punched it, hard.

It exploded in a shower of splinters and larger chunks of wood flew at high speeds from the force. Huh, I feel a little over-powered… I think Death may have given me a too big of a boost, I mean, yeah, in my old world I was fit and all that and could outmatch most blokes in a fight but… eh, logic was more or less vacant in this universe, so why question it?

Never look a gift horse in the mouth, as they say.

I grabbed the mast, though it looked more like I was hugging the giant thing, and heaved. I strained from the weight, my arms tense and my legs bending under the weight of the whole thing. I pulled until I heard the ropes tethered to it snap and break. Stumbling back as most of the tension keeping this thing up and balance vanished; I gritted my teeth and planted my feet wide and steady. Dammit, this thing was heavy.

Turning a little, because it was incredibly hard to move when you had I giant mast in your arms, I saw the second ship was beginning to move from the docks. I glared at the vessel and with a strained yell of "Oh no you don't!" I twisted my body and _threw_ the heavy mast at the departing ship.

The mast flew, and tree things happened at once.

One, the mast struck the side of the ship, causing a large crash that had the ship tip dangerously to one side and made a pretty large piece of the ships side break and fall into the ocean with the mast.

Two, the men on the ship _I_ was on turned to me after watching as their other ship suffered damage caused by my hand, looking absolutely and understandably murderous. After all, I had just caused massive damage to their property, if someone had done that to _my_ ship, or anything of value to me, they would be six feet under already.

And three, canon fire rained down on _both_ ships.

I whirled around and saw that not only had the Navy vessel survived, but had taken over the third ship of the pirate crew. And was currently using both, as battered and damaged as they were, to launch a full assault on both enemy ships. One of which I was on.

'_Of bloody course'_ I thought blithely, unable to bring myself to surprised, but a little irritated all the same. After all, I had practically saved their asses, but they probably would've been relatively fine. Just worse off if I hadn't been here.

I smiled to the panicking crew, who were quickly realising they wouldn't be winning this fight, and waved cheerfully before jumping away just as another barrage struck and all but disintegrated one side of the ship. I landed safely on the docks, and quickly began running to the town. Panic was a dangerous thing. It could make rational men irrational, and cause more trouble than intended discord.

It wasn't hard to find the pirates that had stayed in town to pillage the town, and I meticulously went through the streets to pick off the criminals and bodily _throw_ them down to the shoreline. Whether they lived or not didn't really matter to me, and I quickly started asking about if there were any more pirates hiding in any buildings. Luckily, it seemed in the panic most of the pirates had either been running about, trying to gather their spoils and run, or head down to the docks to fight.

So instead I spent my time calming down the town, insuring its people that the Marines were here and that everything was going to be okay, and for people to go to their main square and try to make sure everyone was accounted for. Their mayor and some of the local law enforcement, that had survived the initial raiding, stepped up to the challenge and began herding people towards their plaza –again, sadly tiny compared to The Islands central plaza- and counting off families and their members. It was slow work, but by the time they got started in a more organised fashion the Navy had defeated the pirates and taken them into custody to be judged and sentenced by a court of law.

The redhead captain found me sitting on a roof, idly kicking my legs back and forth, watching over the people of the plaza. He jumped up, surprising me a little, and sat down next to me silently. He didn't say anything for a long while, and I spent that time to study him once more.

He didn't look particularly injured, just a few scrapes that were more likely from flying debris than actual strikes from an opponent. He didn't even look tired, or even ruffled, while many of his men had visible marks of a hard fight on them. It made me wonder, what was such a strong man doing in the Blues?

"Thank you, for your help" he said finally, bringing me back to the present, and I nodded before letting my eyes fall back to the crowd. I could see groups were beginning to form, families finding each other and rejoicing in the others safety. It made me ache for siblings I would likely never see again, for parents that were a world away, for friends that have most likely moved on and hopefully remember me fondly and in passing. The last thing I wanted was for them to linger in the past, when they still had a future.

"I saw what you did, with the mast" he started and I bit back a sigh "That kind of strength is uncommon in the Blues, you would be more suited to the Grand Line, helping people and-"

"What? Doing good deeds? Your idea of 'good' and my idea of 'good' are possibly very different. I told you I won't become a Marine, I am a traveller and a career like yours would only limit me, cage me, I would lose my freedom" I said, and he stared at me for a long time.

"Lose your freedom? If anything the Government would give you freedom! You wouldn't have to be stationed anywhere, I'm sure they would let you wander where you will-"

"Until I have orders" I cut in again "I would be under the command of strangers, forced to their will and their ideals. I know this seemed to be a rather dark way to look at the Government, but I have always taken the greater powers of this world with a pinch of salt and handful of cynicism" I reasoned when he looked ready to argue my words, but he was responsible enough to stay quiet after I explained my words.

"Very well…" he said eventually, unhappy with my decision not to join the Marines but respectful of my choices "what will you do now?" he asked, and I shrugged. Leaning back against my hands and looking to the blue sky.

"Probably catch a boat to Logue Town, maybe a pirate ship wouldn't mind a hitchhiker" I mused and the captain blanched, and to avoid another argument I added "I actually don't know your name"

He stopped, thought, and nodded "no" he said evenly "I haven't. My name is Ronan, I hold the rank of Captain, and have recently been commanded to look into the phenomenon of the death of an illegal fighting ring champion called 'Gutter' and, later, the pirate crew that was taken down by someone named 'Traveller'" he gave me a sidelong look that screamed 'that would be you' as though I couldn't figure it out. But it was more playful than anything, so I let it slide. That, and I wasn't in the mood to fight a Captain of the Marines, they're known for being strong –Smoker before the two year skip is proof of that- and I didn't want a bounty until I _at least_ got into the Grand Line.

"Wow, were you stationed in the Grand Line before that?" I asked, and he nodded. I hummed in intrigue, but otherwise just lent down onto my back and tucked my hands behind my head. "Well, are you offering too take me into the Grand Line?" he smirked at my question.

"No, that's not permitted to civilians without explicit permission by the World Government, which you don't have" he said, and I looked at him sharply.

"Wait, but if I was singled out, like you said back at that village then wouldn't someone in the World Government want to meet me?" I narrowed my eyes "Unless you were lying just to get some free help" I accused, though it was well hidden by my casual tone, the glint in Ronan's eyes was unmistakable. I glared at him for a minute before sighing and rolling my eyes.

"And you wondered why I distrust the Government" I muttered, to which he laughed at and I chuckled with him "Well, looks like I'll be hitchhiking on some random ship. Better than a bus, I guess" I muttered the last part, but apparently he heard it because it made him stiffen. I looked up in confusion at the red haired man, and slowly sat up.

"A bus?" he asked, as though unsure if he heard right. My brain kicked into overdrive at his uncertain question. This world didn't have buses, at least none that I know of -and considering their technology that's a little strange but, eh, it's _One Piece_\- and the word would be mostly foreign to anyone who heard it. So why would a word like that…

"Yeah…" I said, trying to recall something from my old world that wouldn't sound completely crazy "There's a huge bus system in Melbourne" _'smooth, Alex, real smooth'_ "it's pretty terrible" I said, Melbourne sounding more like mel-bin (Australian pronunciation), and waited for some sort of reaction.

"Melbourne…" he stared at me with something akin to stunned reverence, like a man discovering religion for the first time "you're from Australia then?" he asked, and I perked up at my country's name.

"Yeah, Aussie, born and bred, and you?" I asked like it didn't matter, but we both knew it was completely the opposite. We were both practically vibrating with the discovery that _we_ _weren't alone._

"UK, though I hide my accent pretty well" his accent suddenly changed as he spoke, and I blinked in surprise before I broke out in boisterous laughter. He joined me soon enough and we got a few looks from the plaza, but considering the overall mood of the crowd no one really minded. The whole island was practically oozing joy and excitement of surviving a pirate attack. People were already bringing out food and drink; it looked like an impromptu party was already beginning.

"How long-"

"Have I been here? Several years, did you meet Death?" he asked, waving to one of his men and they tossed up a barrel full of some sort of alcohol, and two mugs.

"Yeah, not really how I imagined him" I replied, accepting the cup full of frothy liquid.

"Same, and you?" he took a sip of his drink, and I copied. I cringed at the sharp taste; I had never really liked beer, though I've only ever had a mouthful. I swallowed and licked my lips, a fruity aftertaste lingered and I couldn't say I didn't like it. Taking another sip, the first taste wasn't so bad now.

"Hm? Oh, I've been here… nearly a year, I've been going from Blue to Blue. Just exploring mostly, I want to see this world properly, though in the last two Blues I had to rush it a bit" I sent a sly look to Ronan, who laughed sheepishly and apologised.

"So, you're going to take the role of a traveller, actually going by that name?" he shook his head with an incredulous smile, and took a large gulp of his drink. I continued to sip my drink, pacing myself because this was my first time actually _drinking_ alcohol.

"Yeah, what made you join the Marines?" I asked, and he shrugged languidly, leaning back on his elbow. I noticed some of his men give him surprised or odd looks, and I could assume they don't see him this relaxed often.

"Seemed like a good idea at the time. At first I wanted to try being a pirate, but if figured if I was here then there had to be others, and that they would most likely be pirates" he gave me a smirk "though you sort of break the mould there" I giggled a little and he continued on "So I tried for the Marines. I had always wanted to go into law enforcement anyway, back home, and I rose through the ranks quickly enough. In another year or so I'll probably make Vice Admiral. But, besides that, I like how I'm doing some good in this wold, I know the World Government is corrupt, and I want to change that. From the inside" he sighed, taking another gulp and finishing his first mug, and poured himself another.

"I want this world to be protected, and while I know not _all_ pirates are evil, they are still criminals and I am a Marine" he said his words with conviction, but I could tell he sometimes wondered how life would've been like as a pirate. I bumped him on the shoulder, and he seemed to understand what I was trying to convey, because he smiled at my little show of comfort and understanding.

"Well, your ambition is admirable, and I hope you succeed in that endeavour. Me, I'm gonna continue to see the world that has become my own and try to change things for the better" I smiled at him, which he returned, and I finished my drink. Pouring myself another one, we continued to talk about other things, simple things, like our homes and families. I was the youngest in a litter of seven, him the oldest of four. I used to live in a valley, and he used to live next to a lake. We continued to compare our lives back before we died –he died in a construction accident about three years before my own demise, so we also discovered that the timelines are warped here as well- and about things we missed and things we didn't. About how we came to be in this world, he was found on the shore of one of the islands in the Grand Line by the Marines –that explained a lot- and I told about how I had 'survived' a landslide, or mudslide, depends on your preference to terminology.

I stopped after my third mug of alcohol, since I was a bit of a light weight in my inexperience, but Ronan just kept going and seemed to be completely unaffected. I pouted when he noticed I had stopped and teased me relentlessly. He made to go for another mug, but I put my hand over the rim of his cup.

"I think you've had enough for one night" I said seriously, though it was completely ruined by the smile I had. He actually _pouted, _this big tough Captain was pouting like a child, how the hell was I not supposed to giggle at that? He put his cup down and we continued to talk and discuss. I never mentioned my spy network.

The next day saw us preparing to set sail for Logue Town, as a thank you for helping out with the defeat of the pirates, Ronan was going to drop me off there before he set out to the Grand Line himself. I had scoffed and called him a cheater, because the Marines had their own way to get into the Grand Line.

I had packed my bag, checked and double checked that I had everything. Then shouldered my pack and headed to the docks. As I got there, a crowd of cheering townsfolk greet my eyes and ears, I tried to slip through unnoticed but considering the circumstances that was impossible. People kept stopping me to say thank you or to congratulate me or wish me well on my journey and other such things. I kept up a smile, thanked people and moved along as quickly as I could without knocking people over.

As I reached the gangplank a small grip on the hem of my hoodie stopped me from boarding. I looked behind me, but seeing no one I looked down and saw a small raven haired girl. She was looking up at me with wide eyes filled with awe and excitement and a bit of shyness. The little girl held a small length of pink heather in one of her hands, and was offering it up to me. I blinked, before smiling and kneeling down and gently accepting the plant. The many flowered stem was only the length of my palm, and showed hints of being picked in a hurry.

"Thank you" I said gently, the girl smiled brightly, a bashful blush dusting her cheeks. I looked down at the little plant, and my smile turned soft and knowing. Ruffling the young child's hair, drawing a giggle from the girl, I stood and turned back to the gangplank. As I boarded the ship, I glanced back at the crowd and the little girl, and gave a small wave. This caused the crowd to respond in cheering, having gone oddly silent during my exchange with the girl.

They continued to cheer, even as we sailed away, and I rested my arms on the guard rails of the ship, twirling the flower in my hand around and inspecting it. A small smile made its way onto my lips unconsciously, the small pink flowers danced in the breeze and I found myself looking forward to my future. I had a good feeling I would survive my attempt at Reverse Mountain.

After all, heather was a symbol for admiration… and good luck.

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**So... How do you like that? The bit with Ronan finding out is a bit clumsy, I know, but it was late at night and couldn't think of anything better. Opinion? Again, sorry for the late posting, here's a cookie for your patience! Hope you enjoyed it!**

**I'm outta here!**


	9. Gold Roger

**Okay, this is more a side-chapter then anything. But I think it would be a fun read. Next Chapter, I am _definitely_ (finally) getting into the Grand Line. How? **

***whispers* Not telling!**

**R&amp;E!**

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"Bye! Try not to get eaten by Sea Kings!" I waved from the docks at Ronan and his crew took off, they had all been fun and the red haired captain had become an excellent friend of mine. I truly hoped we would meet again sometime during my journey through the Grand Line. My smile faltered a little at that thought.

Next we meet, we'll probably be enemies.

I sighed at that thought, and turned away from the ocean and took my time to observe the town. Bustling and happy, Marines everywhere you looked, and it just had a generally safe feel to it. Smoker should still be here, along with… what was her name? Ta-something… Tashi…

Tashigi! Wow, her name is hard to remember sometimes. She and Smoker should still be here, since they left in pursuit of the Strawhats. Okay, right then, I should probably avoid getting into trouble here.

I was not ten feet from the docks when someone bumped into me. I absently apologised and continued on, only to be stopped by a shout.

"Hey you!" I looked behind me to see a thin man with… purple hair? Right… so, a guy with _purple_ hair pointing at me accusingly, I blinked and looked around to make sure he was actually addressing me. Apparently he was, by the angry glare he was sending in my direction.

"Uh… yeah?" I asked in confusion.

"How dare you!?" he snarled, still pointing a finger at me. I continued to give him a mildly confused, and slightly concerned look, was this guy missing a few lights upstairs? I remained silent, which just seemed to piss him off further –seriously, what is with people and being annoyed by silence?- and as his cronies gathered behind him, I realised what he was.

This tool was a pirate, and not a very good one by the looks. I opened my mouth to explain, actually I was going to insult the annoying twat, when… actually, what is that?

That question was self-answering when a white cloud surrounded the group of pirates and lifted them up into the air. Huh, that was unexpected. I followed the trail of white stuff until I saw the reason for this not-entirely-unexpected change of events.

Smoker, in the flesh -err smoke?- was standing a few metres away from me. So… that was what the white cloud was. _Smoke_. Well, aren't I clever? And Tashigi was standing behind him with some Marines, which was _exactly_ what I was hoping to avoid. I sighed and titled my head up to the clear blue sky.

'_You hate me, don't you?'_ I mentally asked any god that seemed to be listening… or Death since he seemed to be the closest thing to a deity I actually _know_ existed. Maybe the Fates, since they seemed to laugh at everyone and their misfortunes.

"Are you alright miss?" I started a little at the sudden voice, turning I saw the bespectacled Tashigi. I glanced behind her and saw the apprehended pirates being led away by the Marines, with Smoker waiting patiently off to the side. I grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of my head.

"Yeah, just questioning why this stuff keeps happening to me" I laughed a little and the dark haired woman smiled kindly. As though understanding my predicament, which led me to wonder what weird things did she encounter in her job protecting this town.

"That's good, we pay special attention to the docks because of pirates, so you don't have to worry" I nodded my thanks at her reassurance, though it was hardly necessary, I could handle riffraff easily enough. She turned to leave, and as she joined Smoker in following the Marines and their captured criminals I bit my lip in thought. Should I?

"Um, wait!" I called, and the two paused, I jogged up to them and rubbed the back of my neck "You guys wouldn't know where I can get some supplies? I'm a little low" I gestured to my pack, and they seemed to understand.

"What do you need?" smoker asked, surprising me a little. I didn't expect him to answer, and looked at him and shrugged a little.

"First aid mostly, bandages, disinfectant, stuff like that. Some thread for damaged clothing. Oh, and herbs for my teas, and a log pose" that got their attention, I grinned a little "Yeah, I'm heading to the Grand Line. I'm a traveller" I stated, and that seemed to surprise Smoker even more.

"Traveller?" he asked, and I gave him a long, slightly confused, look.

"Yeah… have you talked to Ronan?" I asked suspiciously, he stared at me before shaking his head.

"You were in the papers a few weeks ago" he said finally. I blinked at him in surprise. Well, that was unexpected.

"Oh…" I said slowly, already connecting the dots and figuring out that he was talking about the debacle with the three pirates. That's right, I had never given my name, and I had just kept up my alias of 'Traveller' to anybody who asked. "So… I'm not so anonymous anymore" I drawled, then sighed.

"Is that all you need?" his gruff question surprised me, and I looked to him quickly in confusion, before remembering what he was on about.

"Uh, yeah, basically, there's some other stuff but I'm sure I can pick it up as I go" I shrugged, and the man grumbled to himself before he began walking in a different direction to the Marines, who were now out of sight. Tashigi flashed me a sheepish look before following, and after a moment of staring at their backs, I followed after them.

Well, as it turns out, if you walk around with Smoker and Tashigi, you're bound to get some major discounts. I mean, I got some rare herbs that, normally, would've cost me a fortune but I got them for cheap! At first I was wary I was getting a faulty product, but after reassurance from Tashigi and an inspection from myself proved that the things I was getting at an insanely low price were of good quality.

"I feel kind of bad" I admitted as we left our third shop, I was storing the thread and needles I got in my small sewing kit and following the other two almost absentmindedly.

"Why's that?" Tashigi asked, and I glanced up as the latches clicked shut.

"Well, I'm getting all these discounts and I haven't even done anything to earn it" I said, slipping one strap off and putting the sewing kit in its usual place. Shrugging the pack back on and taking a few big steps to catch up to the duo.

"You saved an entire town-"

"And got a free lift by the Navy, besides it didn't look like anyone actually recognised me, so why should I get a discount here, I don't think walking around with you guys should really merit something like that" I finished with a sigh, and therefor missed the appraising, approving look I got by the White Hunter.

The dark haired swordswoman didn't have anything to say to that, and so they continued on walking. I just had to get some food and water purifying tablets, or drops depending on the area, and then I would be all set. I looked away from all the shops and people, and focused on the two Marines in front of me. Why were they helping me? I know they're good guys, but surely they would have something better to do then lead around a random wanderer.

Suddenly I was walking shade, and I turned to see what was obscuring the sun, and promptly lost my breath.

Gol D. Rogers execution platform.

I stopped dead in my tracks and stared up at the structure. It was larger than I expected, and had a lot more… _feel_ to it, I guess. It wasn't intimidating or daunting, like you would expect of something that signifies death to anyone who crosses the line from law abiding citizen to a wanted criminal. It was awe-inspiring, like a great watch tower keeping away the dark and giving warning to any danger on the horizon.

For a moment, a heart stopping moment, I thought I could see something on the top of the platform, a shadowed figure standing proud against the sun. Then I blinked and the image was gone. I released the breath I didn't know I was holding. What was that?

"Miss?" I turned my head to look at Tashigi, and blinked a few more times "Are you alright?" she asked, and I gave a half smile for a second.

"Yeah" I said, looking back up at the platform "Yeah, I'm… I'm fine" I turned to the duo and smiled properly "One more shop to go, right?" I said, walking towards them with easy strides. They both gave me odd looks, but walked forward without a word. I looked over my shoulder at the empty platform for a long moment, before turning back to look ahead and continue on my journey.

Eventually we got everything I needed, but by then it was late afternoon, and I was escorted to a motel for the night. Thanking both of them, and apologising for taking up their day, but they just ignored the latter and said their goodbyes. I stared after them, my brows furrowed in thought.

As far as I knew, what they did today was not normal behaviour for them. Well, Tashigi maybe, but _Smoker?_ Nu-uh, no way would he normal escort someone around like a tour guide. So why had they _both_ done it? Was it because I helped save that town?

Giving a frustrated growl, I near-violently mussed up my hair and turned to the inn. It wasn't shabby, but definitely not high-class. Affordable quality, I guess. I entered and immediately felt grateful, it was cosy and warm, and the receptionist was polite and gave me a window room. Paying upfront, I thanked them as I received my key, and went up to my room.

It was _way_ better than the ones I've stayed at before. I dumped my bag on the floor and collapsed onto the soft queen-sized bed, and I could honestly saw it was _heavenly_ after a day of shopping and the light sparring I did with Ronan earlier before we reach Logue Town. To say I was outclassed would've been a gross understatement, considering that it looked like I was a fumbling child compared to his smooth, efficient, _lethal_ moves. He truly was awesome, he completely kicked my ass. But he was a pretty cool teacher as well; he corrected some of my stances and even showed me some really cool new moves!

"Miss him already" I sighed to myself, and pulled out my personal notebook. Letting it fall open to a random page, I smiled at the pressed flower that slipped from the pages. The heather was flat, but still retained its colour. I plan to get some clear plastic slates or something to help preserve it, but for now I kept it pressed between the pages of my notebook. I mailed my first two notebooks, which were filled with my adventures in the Blues, back to Maria and Boris, but I think this one will be more personal. It was larger than the others, but only enough that I would need to put it in my bag instead of my pockets.

Picking it up, I placed the flower back in the book and closed it. I wasn't in the mood to write tonight, but I wasn't tired either. Standing up, I walked to the window and opened it. The window gave me a view of the docks, and the ocean that laid beyond, and beyond that the Grand Line.

It wasn't overly late, there were still people ambling about, just not many. I closed my eyes and enjoyed the cool salty breeze that blew in, and I began to think. Not of anything important, tonight was too peaceful for such troubling thoughts, but of simple things, like this town.

Form what I remembered; it was the birth and execution place of Gol D. Roger. There were a bunch of other tiny little facts, but I couldn't help remembering the part where Monkey D. Luffy had stumbled across that old bar. I looked about the city, and figured now was a good a time as any, and swung out the window.

Landing on a neighbouring roof, I jumped over the civilians with nary a sound. I kept my eyes down, looking for a familiar sign that would lead me to that bar. I wanted to see it because… well, because I wanted to see if anything like at the execution tower would happen again. That and I was a bit of a fangirl, and wanted to see a place that was frequented by a famous pirate.

The word 'Roger' flashed by and I silently skidded to stop on the tiled roof I had just landed on. Padding back, I looked down into the alley, and saw the sign hanging from the wall above the entrance. Gold Roger Bar, so it _did_ exist. It wasn't in the manga, and I was worried it wouldn't be here now.

Dropping down silently onto the stone-paved ground, I stared at the door for a moment, taking in the little grooves in the old wood, before entering the bar. It was dark, but my eyes adjusted quickly, and as I walked down the stairs I suddenly noticed how quiet it was in here. Like a sudden silence after a cheerful and boisterous noise had once been heard. I passed through the swinging doors, and looked about the bar.

It seemed frozen. Frozen in time and lifeless, but held the ghosts of brighter days and happier times. I don't know how long I stood there, just looking at the room in front of me, but I swear I could hear the distant echoes of people laughing, yelling, cheering and talking. I could smell the lingering scent of alcohol, tobacco, gun powder and cooked meat. I looked to the bar, where Luffy and Roger himself had sat, before turning to inspect the rest of the place.

Movement brought my eyes back to the stool, but now someone was sitting there. Black shaggy hair, a matching moustache, a large red captain's coat and a large frame of a man sat at the bar. He was facing towards the room, with his elbows resting on the bar table behind him. He was grinning, seeing something that I could not, something that happened long before I came about.

Gol D. Roger.

I continued to stare at the man, eyes wide and mouth slightly agape. Slowly, a sound not unlike the rushing of a waterfall filled my ears, but it cleared and the sound of chatter and laughter replaced it. The dark room lit up in a golden light, and the smells became stronger.

Silhouettes of strangers swarmed around me, but I barely noticed as I continued to stare at the man who is and has been long dead. Then, slowly, Roger turned his head and looked straight at me with his confident and oddly friendly grin. His powerful, intense eyes bore into me and I found that I couldn't breathe.

"Hey!"

I jumped at the sudden noise and turned around, seeing an old man I recognised from the anime. Raoul, he had been a friend of Roger. I looked back to the room, but it was dark again and any life that had been was gone, except for me and the old man.

"S-sorry" I said quietly, stepping back and letting him through. He gave me an odd, considering look, before walking through and towards the bar.

"So what can I get you?" he asked as he slid behind the table and began inspecting his bottles. I quickly walked to the bar and sat at the stool next to Rogers' seat.

"I don't really know much about alcohol" I admitted, and Raoul chuckled at my clear inexperience.

"A first-timer, huh?" he asked, grabbing a bottle and two cups.

"Second-timer, actually, a friend got me a while ago, but I didn't drink too much" I admitted, watching as he poured two cups of a red drink and handed one to me. "Thank you" I said quietly, and took a sip. It was sweet and smooth, but had a bitter aftertaste that blended nicely with the flavours.

"This is good stuff" I said, and the man laughed a little and showed me the bottle. I didn't recognise the drink, and didn't even bother trying to read the writing. Probably wouldn't be able to pronounce it anyway.

"Right, got it from the New World" I perked up a little when he said that "Years ago. A gift from Roger" he finished, staring at the bottle like one might a photo of a friend. I looked down at the drink in surprise.

"I'm honoured you would share this drink with me, but…?" I trailed off, oddly subdued by what had occurred barely minutes before at the entrance.

"Why share it at all?" he smiled at me "A drink isn't meant to sit on a shelf forever, and you seem like good company, bring a little life into this place" he said, taking a gulp of his own drink. I stared at him for a moment, trying to decipher the words hidden in his sentence, but figured that right now was not a time to be suspicious.

Taking another drink, I looked around again, half expecting to see the place come alive again or to see Roger sitting next to me. "What happened to this place?" I asked, not noticing the look of _knowing_ the old man gave me.

"He died"

"The execution"

"Right, you should have seen this place back before then. Pirates everywhere, and causing a mess that cost me a fortune every night" he shook his head with a smile. He continued to regale me with stories of Roger and his crew, and of other pirates involved. I laughed and joked with him, and told him of my own adventures and my plans to see the Grand Line in my own way, which he found admirable but warned me of the dangers. I don't know how long I sat there, like a child eager to hear stories from her grandfather, but by the time we both decided it was time to pack up. By then the bottle was half gone.

"Thank you" I said as I stood "for the stories, and for the drink" I smiled and pushed the chair back in.

"No, thank you for the company, not many young folk interested in the ramblings of an old man" we both chuckled, and I waved him goodbye over my shoulder as I made my way to the exit.

"No problem. See you later old man" I said merrily.

"Good bye miss" Raoul said with a chuckle.

"Come back soon!"

I whirled around at the voice, but found only Raoul wiping the table. He paused and gave me a look I couldn't decipher, but it made me think he knew what had just happened. I looked to Rogers' seat, and lowered my head so Raoul couldn't see me eyes.

"If I can" I whispered as I turned away, and headed back upstairs and into the cool night air.

* * *

**I honestly don't know what I was doing with this chapter. But again, it's mostly a filler. Grand Line is next up, so lets hope we actually manage to _get_ there.**

**I'm outta here!**


	10. The Grand Line!

**And here we are! Over a month since the last update! I had to struggle with this one, a bit, since I didn't know what to put in it. But there's something in there to confuse and confound all you lovelies.**

**Read and Enjoy!**

* * *

"Tie that down!"

"Secure the canons!"

"Look out!"

A huge wave crashed into the ship once more, and I braced myself against the sudden force. A dark blur swept past me, and on instinct reached out and grabbed it. The man, who had been about to fall over the edge, gave me a thankful look as I set him on the lurching deck, before running off to do a random task. The pirate crew I had managed to hitch a ride from were currently unnamed, as in they weren't known well enough to have actually earned a name.

I was soaked through, and my fingers were beginning to go numb, and my feet hurt, which was an odd thing, since I hadn't felt pain in my bare feet for months now, but I supposed that constantly kicking things and sliding along the deck would make anyone's feet sore. I shook my head in a vain attempt to rid the water from my eyes, and looked to the great cliff that was part of Reverse Mountain. While half the crew were trying to help steer the ship clear of the dangerous mountain edge, the others were running around trying to keep everything from falling over board. If only they could do that for themselves.

The ship moved suddenly, sending everyone to the floor, and suddenly that mountain side was getting a lot closer really quickly. I distantly heard the man at the helm yelling about some sort of tide pulling them to the cliff, but I didn't have time for that. Rolling onto my knees, I pushed off the deck. I hit the rocky wall a little harder than anticipated, but I ignored that in favour of sliding down at a controlled speed.

Then, with perfect timing, wedged myself between the cliff face and the ship before said ship collided with aforementioned cliff face. My hands were braced against the ships side above my head, while my feet were pressed against the cliff. The force quickly made me crouch and bend, but I refused to break. I tensed my muscles and pushed with all my might against the two surfaces I was pressed between. The wood under my hands creaked and groaned, and I prayed that the wood would hold. The rock beneath my feet cracked and I felt flecks of rock imbed themselves in my feet. I coughed out my breath and sucked in another before pushing out with my legs and torso again. I heard more than felt something pop in my shoulder, the left one, but with the icy rain numbing my skin and the cold piercing my flesh I could hardly feel anything.

With something that I could only call a strained war cry I gave a final shove and the ship was sent to open, raging, ocean once more. Finding a handhold, I swung myself up to the railing and flipped over it onto the deck. I could only stand for a moment before my shaking legs gave out under me, and I landed on my knees without an ounce of grace. I looked up as I felt a warm hand land on my shoulder, and didn't even react as I felt the joint be pushed back into place. Well, that can't be good.

I allowed the man, I think he was the first mate, pull me to my feet. He put an arm respectfully around my torso and my right arm over his shoulders to help my stay standing. I gave him a tired smile, because _damn_ that had taken more out of me than I thought. I looked up, and saw the only gap in the mountain that lead to the Grand Line. Had I literally pushed the ship into the right position to actually traverse Reverse Mountain?

Apparently, yes, because as soon as the thought crossed my mind, the ship was pulled sharply forward as it caught the current and shot up the mountains river. The first mate and I clung to the side railing, but barely a moment later had I begun to work my way up to the bow. I _had_ to see this from a good spot.

When I reached the bow, and consequently the highest point of the ship, I watched as the mountain blurred passed and the cloudy sky rushed to meet us. I smiled widely as my heart thudded in my chest and we pierced through the lower layers of the clouds, I looked down at the shrinking ocean and found myself laughing excitedly. Then, suddenly, we were above the cloud cover, with nothing but blue skies above us and a fluffy blanket of cloud below. The sun's rays seemed to burn against my cold skin, but I barely noticed as I stared about the beautiful scene.

'_I wonder if Skypiea is anything like this' _was my immediate thought, as a sense of weightlessness took over me, and then we were falling. I gave an excited cheer as we plummeted, and somehow managed to land on the other side of the mountains river with little problem. The landing was a bit harsh, but we didn't lose anyone so that was fun.

I don't know whether I was relieved or disappointed about Laboon not being right in the middle of the downward river, but I suppose I should be relieved. I don't think I could handle a confrontation like that right now. We landed with an almighty splash, and I'm pretty sure my stomach met my heart just then. For a good twenty seconds no one moved, firstly due to the sudden stop and secondly because _they made it_.

Staring up at the sunny –when did the clouds part? - Sky, I had landed on my back, I heaved out a disbelieving laugh. I had made it. I was in the Grand Line! Within my one-year deadline to boot! I still had at least, what, a month to go? Belatedly, I realised I missed my birthday, and that meant I was now eighteen, but considering what I had just gone through I was far too elated to care.

Cheers began to ring out among the pirates as they recovered their breaths and the realisation that they're alive and well truly hit them. They began to rise and help their comrades up, some were probably doing silly dances by the sound of it, and I heard more than one person call out to get the ale. I just stayed were I was, a huge smile on my face, the sun warming my skin and a completely different and thrilling elation filling me. I was excited and determined and full of hope despite the fact I know the next few months were not going to be easy. I was happy.

A shadow came over me, and I tilted my head to spy Captain Christopher Keys in all his glory. He was a dark skinned man, with a shock of short white hair, tall and broad with plenty of muscle in between. Between all that, and his huge blue pirate captains' jacket with the gold stitching and buttons, he truly was someone hard to miss. He was grinning brightly, obviously happy with not only their successful entrance to the Grand Line, but also for the safety of his men.

"Well, Traveller, we made it" he sat down next to me, cross-legged, and offered me a bottle of something. I laughed a little, and eyed him slyly.

"I don't think I can get up on my own" I stated easily, and the man gave a sigh and pulled me into a sitting position. I hissed a little at the tugging on my shoulder it caused, and my back was sore from the pressure, but beyond that I was okay, minus my ankle that looked distinctly broken. Taking the bottle with my right hand, I gave him my thanks and pulled out the cork with my teeth. I took a whiff, and after a moment of mental debate, shrugged and took a small swig, I was of age now.

I coughed and hacked as the liquid burned its way down my throat. Keys laughed and slapped my back a few times, mindful of my injuries, though that didn't really help. My eyes were glossy, and my stomach was oddly warm, I think it's from the alcohol. Keys was still laughing, and I lightly kicked his leg with my undamaged ankle.

Didn't do much, but I felt a little better.

"What is this stuff?" I coughed out, but still took another sip. Now knowing what to expect, I didn't experience such a bad reaction, but it still burned down my throat. At least I wasn't hacking, though I had to clear my throat a little to get rid of the weird tingle the burning left behind.

"Sake" the dark skinned man stated, a huge grin on his face, and he took a long swig. Now that just wasn't fair, how come he doesn't have a coughing fit? Meanie.

Music started playing down on the main deck, and I hummed out a random tune as they tried to settle on a rhythm. Little did I know one of the crewmen were listening in, and naturally in their merry state decided to let everyone hear what he was saying.

"Oi Traveller! What's that you're singing?" he practically yelled, I looked over my shoulder at the man, and stared at him for a moment. Realising what he was on about –boy this stuff is strong- a blush a bright red colour and stared down at my bottle.

"Just a song from my old home" I muttered, though Keys heard me easily enough.

"Well, let's hear it then!" he crowed, lifting me up and setting my on the railing parallel to the helm on the other side of the ship. I looked down at the deck, and saw everyone staring up at me with expressions of expectant excitement. Realising what just happened, I blush and cleared my throat.

"_They come from the farms and the factories too  
They all soon forget who they are  
The cares of today, well they're soon washed away  
As they sit on a stool by the bar  
The girl with green eyes in the rolling stones shirt  
Doesn't look like she works on the land  
And a man at the end he's a very good friend  
Of a man who sells parts second hand!"_

I continued to sing, even though I was sort of embarrassed. I had never sung in front of an audience. I had to change a few of the lyrics otherwise they just may confuse the audience.

"_Down at the Red Rose café in the harbor  
There by the port just outside Amsterdam  
Everyone shares in the songs and the laughter  
Everyone there is so happy to be there!_

"_While the salesmen relax with a few pints a beer  
They try not to talk about trade  
The poet won't write any verses tonight  
But he may sing a sweet serenade  
So pull up a chair and forget about life  
It's a good thing to do now and then  
And if you like it here then I have an idea  
Tomorrow let's all meet again!_

Some of the musicians started playing along to the song, and it sounded very similar to the actual song. A few differences, and few extra notes or a different instrument, but it wasn't bad, dare I say it made the song that little bit better.

"_Down at the Red Rose café in the harbor  
There by the port just outside Amsterdam  
Everyone shares in the songs and the laughter  
Everyone there is so happy to be there!_

To my surprise, everyone began singing along partway through the second chorus, and continued on through the third chorus, all our voices joined in as we complete the last stanza of the song.

"_Down at the Red Rose café in the harbor  
There by the port just outside Amsterdam  
Everyone shares in the songs and the laughter  
Everyone there is so happy to be there!_

_Everyone there is so happy to be there!"_

I did an awkward little bow, and smiled shyly at the crowd. They all cheered and demanded another song, to which I obliged with a little more enthusiasm. As I sang I noticed the lighthouse by the entrance, and just as I opened my mouth to mention it, the world quaked as something crashed intot he side of the mountain.

_Laboon._

I stumbled and limped over to the side of the ship and looked down into the depths, for a moment it was nothing but blue, but then a dark spot could be seen deep below and… oh my god _itwascomingrightatus!_

The ship tilted madly until it was practically vertical as a giant bulge of water shot upwards, I clung the too railing desperately as we followed the path of gravity. We hit something and everything violently went upwards before dropping down at a less acute angle and we slid down whatever we hit before crashing into the water with a fantastic splash. We must have hit his fin or something. When the world settled, I noticed a loud ringing in my ears and shook my head in an attempt to clear it. Leaning heavily against the splintered railing, I looked up to see the island whale that had hit us.

Well, they certainly got the name right. I rose on shaky legs, looking up at the wailing whale. Oh, so my ears weren't ringing, it was Laboon crying. The poor thing paused in its crying, and I sighed in relief, that was until I heard the canons being loaded.

"No!" I yelled, leaping down the stairs and putting my hand over the ignition vent "He's not attacking us!" the men gave me incredulous looks, and many looked ready to argue my claim, when a hissing sound stopped all movement. Looking behind me, I saw a… well what looked like a vault door that was imbedded in Laboon's flesh and skin.

The door opened, revealing a familiar man. He was balding, with white hair and wrinkled skin, and had strange petal-looking things rimming his temple. His clothing reminded me of those Hawaiian shirts. He looked at us in surprise, probably not expecting to see us, and the crew looked up at him in equal shock.

"Yo" I lifted a hand in casual greeting, and looked up into the sky to stare at the silhouette of the island whale. He really was huge. I looked back down at Crocus and smiled politely at him "We need to do some repairs to the ship, is it okay if we stay here until it's completed?" I asked, and the guy just stared at me for a long time. Eventually, he made a considering hum, before nodding to me. Well, that was easy.

And like that we set up on the rocky shore and, for the most part, just rested. Today had been, well, it had definitely been an odd one. While the men started unloading some things form the ship, the crews' doctor took a look at me. My ankle was broken, but it was only minor, and my shoulder would heal just fine. He bandaged both just to be sure, and I thanked him for his work.

Unfortunately, none of the crew members would let me help with the work. Keys outright ordered me to sit down and rest, I had done enough. I had huffed and unhappily plopped onto a large rock and watched the men unload the ship and prepare dinner, it was getting late. Just to have something to do, I pulled out my sewing kit and worked on repairing some of my clothes, most of them only had a bit of wear and tear, barely anything noticeable, but I was bored.

The smell of hot food brought my attention back to the real world and when I looked up it was dark, someone had placed a lantern next to me so I could work, and dinner was almost ready. In fact, the cooks were calling for everyone to 'come and get it!' as they served it out. My stomach growled at the realisation that I hadn't eaten since late morning, which was about when we sailed right into the storm.

I stood and started limping over to get myself a bowl, when everyone gave a distressed 'no!' and practically dog-piled me to the ground. I wheezed out an 'ow' as my shoulder and ankle throbbed painfully. I distantly heard someone yell something, I couldn't hear properly since there was about six-feet of people on me, and suddenly the weight vanished and I was gently set on my feet.

"What did I say about working in your condition?" Keys asked dangerously low, I rubbed my head as I looked up in annoyance and confusion.

"I was just heading over to get some food" I stated. Well, more grumbled but I doubt Keys would notice. The larger man blinked owlishly, before abruptly began laughing loudly and merrily. Slapping me on the back enough to make me stumble, there was gonna be a bruise there, and turning to everyone who was watching us.

"Bring out the ale! Start on the meat! We've crossed into the Grand Line! Let's celebrate!" the pirate captain raised his hands up into the air and his crew cheered, running about and pulling out random things from the crates and the ship itself.

I sweat-dropped as I watched the scene unfold, wondering how Keys had gone from growling and scolding to laughing and celebrating.

Between one blink and the next a crate was set behind me and food was shoved into my hands, someone pushed on my shoulder to get me to sit and a mug of ale was placed beside me. Another blink and music was playing and I was singing songs and learning a few as well. As the crew got deeper into their cups, I had stopped after my third mug, and more rowdy as the night went on, I stood and silently made my way from the group. Sitting by the water where Laboon was floating nearby, I smiled up at the great eye as he looked down at me.

"Nice night" I stated pleasantly, but otherwise allowed the silence to settle around us. The distant buzz of the party a calming backdrop to the dark night. I looked up and saw the stars, thousands and millions shinning and glittering against the inky canvas of the sky.

Suddenly, the music in the distance stopped and all was silently for a few seconds before it started up again. A familiar tune was carried by the breeze and brought a music-like pained whine from the Island Whale, one that I was familiar with. The ghost of an old scar long healed.

I looked up at the poor whale; the massive scars running over his head were truly something to attest to his prowess. I would've lost the use of my arms if I tried to beat down a mountain. The words to the familiar song came into being, but the voices were not of the crew. Confused, I turned back to the partying crew, and sucked in a breath.

It was the Rumbar Pirates. Keys and his crew were nowhere to be found, but the music still flowed and the singing was as cheerful as ever. Brook was playing the violin, his afro abundant and he was still actually living. A tiny Laboon was by the shore near them, singing and dancing happily with them. It was painful to watch, to see something so simply happy and purely joyous, and to know what was going to happen. The tragedy that would occur and the pain that would be suffered, and there was nothing I could do, nothing I would change here.

But how could I look away? It was like looking at a photo album full of old memories, full of old friends. I took a shuddering breath, but it caught when Calico Yorki turned and _looked right at me._ My eyes widened, not completely understanding what was going on, and watched as a confused yet slightly concerned look took over the blonde man's features. I gave a smile, shaky and brittle as it was, and raised a hand in greetings. Before he could react, though, I closed my eyes tightly and turned away. The voices instantly changed back to Key's crew, who were still alive, and the echoes of the Rumbar pirates, who were _dead and gone_, faded into the echo of my mind.

Laboon made a concerned hum, and when I opened my eyes I found everything blurry. I had been crying, and never realised it. I placed a hand to my cheek and pulled it back, staring at the liquid reflecting in the dim light of the half-moon. I gave another shuddering breath, but daren't look back to the celebration in fear of it happening again.

"I'm okay Laboon" I said softly, not caring that I wasn't supposed to know his name yet "I'll be okay"

The days passed quickly, and soon the ship was repaired and well stocked for the journey to the next island. Their navigator's Log Pose pointing in a direction I could guess was North-East, and Cronus was giving them a final farewell with a few warnings. I had grown to like the old man, but really I had truly bonded with the Island Whale. We were both sad to be parted, but I promised I would visit when I got the chance, and that he better not hurt himself too badly while I'm away.

"Don't worry" I said, sitting on Laboon's head and patting him affectionately "You'll see me again" he gave another whine, this one resonating pain and a little disbelief. I shifted until I was lying face down on the giant whale, my arms spread wide like I was trying to hug him.

"You'll see them again, too" I said quietly, and the whale froze under me. My voice had resonated with truth, with unshakable knowledge that what I had said was true and that it would happen. His eyes watered and he began to cry, but I don't think they were sad or anything, I think he was happy and maybe a little relieved. Happy that someone believed that they would return as well, and relieved to be reassured of it, this unimaginable loneliness he has endured and will continue to endure it truly something to admire. Brook better get his bony ass here as soon as he bloody well can, otherwise he's gonna need a shit ton of milk after I'm through with him.

"I gotta go know, okay? But I'll see you again, and I'll even send some letters so you know I haven't disappeared. Would that help?" I asked with a gentle sort of happiness, petting him slowly as I did. My response was joyous singing as Laboon danced a jig, a yes then.

"Alex! It's time to go!" I lifted my head and stared down at the tiny dot that was the captain. How his voice travelled all the way up here was a question that probably didn't have an answer. I sighed and allowed myself to slide off the Island Whale, and plummet down towards the ship.

Keys caught me easily and, since he was still adamant I walk on my ankle as little as possible, set me on the railing like a child. He turned to his crew and called out with a booming voice "Alright men! Set Sail!" and the crew responded with resounding cheers and quickly set themselves to work. A small smile made its way onto my lips, and for a moment I was tempted to stay. I wished I could be part of a crew, to have nakama, but I was sent here for a reason, a mission.

A mission I couldn't abandon.

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**Okay, while I'm not going to immediately explain what is going on with Alex's mystical 'sees ghosts of the past' thing, but it will be in later chapters. If you have any questions (not pertaining to Alex's new mysterious ability) I'll try answering them at the end of each chapter.**

**R&amp;R my peeps!**

**Imma outta here!**


	11. A Grand Fight

**This one is relatively quick, since I've been writing a bunch and not updating. Sorry about that little part, but on the upside, you can expect one or two more chapters soon... if I get around to posting them. *Sigh* the struggles of an author... Eh, oh well!**

**By the way, I screwed up with a small thing, I've been saying that the hoodie is red, when it's meant to be maroon. So if you see it anywhere, please point it out so I can change it. Thank you!**

**Read &amp; Enjoy!**

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I took a sip out of my mug, the drink sweet and smooth, and watched as the other patrons mingled and partied or stayed where they were and made merry among friends. It was loud and happy, with no one in the mood to start a fight, and I found myself relaxing despite being in the company of strangers.

I was currently sitting in a U-shaped booth, the seats cushioned and the table attached to the floor. I could only guess it was to help keep people from flipping them, though anyone with any decent strength could accomplish it. I had a hot meal in front of me, something I haven't had for a good few weeks, and my injuries from Reverse Mountain were completely healed.

I had parted with Keys and his crew, still unnamed, a good month ago, after we had reached the first habituated island. They had been reluctant to let me leave, since my ankle and shoulder weren't fully healed, but I promised I wouldn't get into any fights or trouble until after I had healed completely.

I got into a few fights not long after, but none of them were all that challenging even with my injuries. I had been continuing my island hopping, wandering around and collecting informants where I could. I received updates from my network at least once a week. Some had already called on their favours, getting rare plants or looking for good towns where some of the less-than-pure-intentioned informants could 'set up shop' in the Grand Line.

It was strange to be here. In the Grand Line, in the world of One Piece, and not be a pirate or a marine or anything like that. I was just a wanderer, a traveller. This place was where Devil Fruit users went to test their mettle, where pirates went to achieve their dreams, where the most powerful Marines were stationed. And then there was me, just me, a single little person with otherworldly knowledge and a strong right hook, trying to change the course of the world. It was moments like this, when my thoughts got away from me, that I felt truly insignificant, I felt scared and frustrated and overwhelmed.

'_But you're not alone'_ a voice whispered over my turbulent thoughts, calming my mind and steadying my heartbeat. No, I wasn't alone; there was Ronan and probably others like us. I wanted to talk to him, to ask if he knew anything about how we got here, why we were chosen, I know I had that chance before but I was a little more concerned that _there was someone else like me._

Suddenly someone burst through the doors of the bar, silencing any and all noise. He looked panicked and like he had just run from the docks all the way into town.

"Pirates! Pirates are heading right for us!" he yelled, dread and panic giving his words extra weight as they settled in everyone's mind.

"Oh, so he did run from the docks" I muttered into my cup as I took another sip. I doubt it was any pirate crew I knew, the strongest ones were off in the New World, and I was still a good three years early in the timeline. I figured since Laboon doesn't have Luffy's mark, I was before his time, and with no sign of Ace's wanted poster, I was before him as well. Though, there actually was a chance he is currently a pirate. He was captain of the Spade Pirates before joining Whitebeard, wasn't he?

The sound of a panicked ruckus broke me from my thoughts, and I realised everyone was running about like headless chickens. Collecting valuables, trying to get out the door, some people were even trying to finish off their meals. Finishing my drink, I left my meal where it was along with some money for the food, grabbed my bag and left via window.

I walked towards the docks calmly as the rest of the island ran about. Though, now that I looked at it seriously, it seemed like there was a sort of awareness going on among the locals, they were all heading in the same general direction and most had bags on their backs. So, it seemed they had a plan in case of an attack or something. Well, at least they're prepared, if poorly so.

The ship was a large one, and the Jolly Roger was the typical skull and bones design, but with an axe sticking out of the cracked skull. I was briefly reminded of Bifur from The Hobbit, and as such was completely unimpressed with the lack of originality. 'Different worlds' be damned, that was Tolkien's thing!

Setting my bag down on the brick road just before the docks, near one of the buildings, I stretched a little and cracked my spine to release the pressure there. Really, I need to have that checked out; I doubt it was a good thing.

The first round of cannon fire echoed into the town, the cannons themselves following shortly after. Leaning a little to the right, I twisted my torso slightly to avoid one of the incoming projectiles. It passed by me, the tailwind whipping my clothes and hair around wildly, and crashed into the town behind me. I winced a little, I'll admit I probably could have stopped that, but with the other buildings exploding around me, did it even really matter?

"Oh well" I shrugged to myself, turned back to the ship, and smirked. Tensing my legs, I waited a moment before shooting off at high speeds towards the ship, moving in the familiar zigzag pattern.

Bullets whizzed past my head as I moved, and I grimaced at that. It seemed this wasn't a very good technique for sneaking up on people, granted with the giant splashes I'm making behind me it's not really surprising. I jumped up and landed on the railing of the large ship, the men who had been shooting barely jumped as they swirled their guns to me. Well, at least they're professional.

I jumped out of the way as they pulled the trigger, causing them to accidently shoot their own, and I landed in the midst of the crew. It took me a split second to realise that most, if not all, had some kind of weapon on them. Knives, staffs, guns, swords and was that a mattock? Yes, yes it was.

I ducked under a swing from a giant hammer, and performed a low spin-kick to send him crashing into the crowd. After that, it was like the signal to start attacking, and everything was a blur. Ducking, spinning, kicking, jumping, moving, attacking, fighting, winning, _surviving,_ it was all the same blur of movement. It was a volatile mix of instinct and intellect, forms of flexibility and attacks dependant on availability. Half the time I didn't even know what I had done, not registering my actions before I was moving again. They had swarmed me, I had barely any room, and whenever I managed to beat them back, they just closed back in as soon as I stopped for breath.

"Enough!" someone called, the men automatically stopped and backed away. I didn't relax, in fact I'm sure I tensed further, and slowly turned to stare up at the apparent captain. He was tall, a good head above me, and lean with muscle. Strapped to his back was a giant battle axe, silver and black in colour, and looking sharp and deadly. Dark hair cropped in the typical army style from my old world, wearing a black tank top and grey camouflage pants and army boots. He looked like a typical grunt, but by the discipline of his crew, he wasn't one to be underestimated.

"Looks like the little kitties got some claws" he threw his head back and laughed "So what are you? The local hero?" he asked mockingly. I grinned and shrugged, acting carefree about a situation like this generally pisses off ones opponents.

"Nah, just a Traveller, and I don't like it when people interrupt my meal. That was the first hot meal I've had in weeks, you know" I replied casually. This actually threw off the captain a bit, and he stared at me like I was just a few notches above crazy. Which, considering the circumstances, probably isn't too far off. The he started laughing again, pulling out an old newspaper out of his back pocket, and flicked it open to a page with a photo I recognised.

I was standing next to Ronan, his crew lined up behind him, and we were all staring at the camera. He was wearing a serious, noble expression, the men all stone-faced, and I had an arm wrapped around the man's shoulders and flashing the peace sign at the camera with a shit-eating grin on my face. The image was black and white, but still crisp and clear. I had a copy of it in my personal journal, cut out from a newspaper.

"Traveller, huh?" he said in contemplation as he pretended to read the article about the saving of the town I was involved in. "Says here you lifted an entire mast and flung it at one o he enemy ships" he sent me a mocking, questioning look, and I bit my cheek to keep myself from retorting. This bastard was a real asshole. Looking around his crew, I didn't spy a single female member, and while that's not saying much since the number of women in the pirating business is a lot fewer than men, most crews have at least _one_ woman in their crew.

"What, nothing to say to that?" he asked, a mocking tone in his voice, and I sighed at his behaviour. Standing straight, I turned to him fully and crossed my arms. It seemed the man-sized brat was going to drag this out.

"Not to you, no" I stated casually, like I was commenting on the weather. A muscle beneath his left eye began to spasm violently, and my eyes narrowed at that. Something like that shouldn't piss anyone off so easily, I mean it was disrespectful, don't get me wrong, but he's acting like I insulted his mother or something.

'_He doesn't like being disregarded, dismissed, he craves attention'_ the fighter in me whispered, and already my mind began to work out how I could use that against him. I shifted into a deceitfully relaxed stance, and gave the axe-wielding captain a bored look.

"I have nothing to say to your kind" I said dismissively, almost lazy in my confidence. It was almost insulting how easily he fell for it, I didn't even have to try, but then he moved. By the time I realised he was gone, he was already behind me.

Instinct and my reaction time saved me from losing my head as I ducked under the swing of the large weapon. The tailwind it kicked up was almost enough to unbalance me, the force was that great, and suddenly I was doing a quickly manoeuvred tumble roll forward. By the loud cracking sound, I think it's safe to say I avoided getting cut in half as well. Dammit, if this guy was a swordsman I could just use my experience with Zoro to disarm him and kick his sorry ass back to the Blues.

I stood and whirled around in time to see the blade swinging towards my side, ramming my knee upwards and jerking my elbow down I managed to catch the blade between them and stop its collision course with my ribs. Still, I skidded several feet to the side from the momentum alone, the force of his swing causing my elbow and knee to throb from the pressure I was exuding to keep the blade from slicing my to pieces.

The man smirked at me, I glared in return, and he pulled his weapon the other way, throwing me off balance long enough for him to deliver a powerful kick to my gut. The air didn't even get a chance to leave my lungs before I was sent flying through the railing and skipping across the oceans' surface. After the fourth or fifth skip, I right myself mid-air slid across the water in a kneeling position for several metres before I had slowed down enough to control my own movements. I raised my head slightly until I could glare balefully at the ship before shooting forward with as much force as I could muster.

I closed in on the ship at alarming speed; I could barely register how close I was before it was just a few metres away. Kicking up a magnificent splash, I pushed off the water and rose above the ship, the giant spray of water rising behind me like some water beast trying to devour everything around it. Probably looked pretty cool, but I digress.

I landed with surprising gentleness on the yard of the main sail, despite my less than pleasant mood. I had really hoped I would enjoy this fight, but the captain just had to go and be a complete flibbertigibbet.

I looked down in time to see a black and white blur heading towards me at high speeds. Cursing under my breath, I leapt out of the way just before the wood where I had been standing exploded upwards and the image of the captain stood tall and proud on the damaged spar. I grit my teeth when my back hit the mast, how the hell was I supposed to beat this guy? His weapon kept me at a distance, where he had the advantage, and for all his hot-headedness he used his weapon like it was an extension of his arm.

I ducked as he swung, the axe imbedding itself into the mast, and aimed a sweeping kick for his knees. He jumped over it and landed in a casual crouch on his weapons handle, grinning down at me like he already won the battle. A snarl tore through my throat as I aimed an uppercut with my left fist to his weapon, wishing it would just shatter.

It didn't naturally, but it did dislodge the weapon and send it and the captain flying into the air. By the surprised yell, he wasn't expecting it, and I took the chance I had. Leaping after him, I aimed a series of fast-paced kicks to his gut and chest, sending up high and higher into the air. He had let go of his weapon long ago, and it fell to the force of gravity to either land in the ocean or the ship, I didn't care which.

When we both started losing momentum, I hooked my bandaged feet under his arms and did butchered mid-air backflip to throw him under me. We fell for a while, and then I twisted and slammed my heel into his chest with an almighty battle cry. He was a blur as he shot away from me and crashed into his ship with an explosion of dust and debris. I landed on an undamaged part of the railing, a safe distance from the cloud, and watched as the air cleared to reveal a gaping hole in the deck where their captain had landed. Huh, maybe I should have gotten his name.

"Captain Carter!" one of the crewmates yelled in distress.

Oh, never mind.

I sighed and turned my back from the scene, looking towards the island and its port town, and was about to head back to my cold meal when I heard the ruckus behind me quieten. Just as I turned my head, however, I felt something slam into me and send me soaring over the ocean and straight into the town.

I don't know how many buildings I crashed through, but I did know that when I finally stopped I had broken more bones that ever before. I hacked for breath, and turned my head as I heaved my half eaten meal mixed with no small portion of blood. I forced myself to stand, staggering and stumbling as I tipped too far one way. My sense of balance was off and my left eye was tinted red. I place an unsteady hand over it and when I pulled it back my palm and fingers were covered in red, I blindly searched for the cut. I found it, starting from the centre of my forehead just below the hairline, it continued down the left side of my face, just skimming the hairline, and stopping millimetres from my ear. The entire left half of my face was coated in the red sticky liquid, making it look like some kind of morbid war paint.

I limped and staggered out of the crumbled ruins that had once been a large building, and onto the main road. My right leg kept giving out, and I could feel my knee. My mind distantly whispered it was probably dislocated, and when I felt it I found that my mind had been right, it was dislocated. How did one relocate a knee? I might have to sit down to do it, but I didn't want to sit down, if I did sit down I might not be able to stand back up. That would be bad. Maybe if I kicked something, it would be forced back into place? Yeah, let's try that.

I limped back to a wall; half collapsed, and sloppily drove my knee into it, destroying what was left of the structure. I felt and heard the pop of bone returning back into its socket, and suddenly I was able to feel my leg again, though it was all tingly. Like when you lean on your arm for too long and it gets pins and needles.

"Ow…" I whined, stumbling backwards and into the main road again. It was oddly abandoned, probably because everyone else had run off to wherever it was they went when shit like this happened. I stretched my back, and my spine twinged painfully. Somewhere in the back of my head, alarm bells were going off, but right now the rest of my brain was too busy reminding me just how much pain I was in.

I heard a distant laugh, and looked up to see Captain Carter standing on the roof of one of the intact buildings. I couldn't see his face from this distance, but I could imagine he would be smiling condescendingly at me. I frowned at that, and then my frown evolved into a scowl before descending into a snarl. This bastard…

I shot forward, ignoring my body's protests, and smashed my fist into the building he was standing on, enjoying the feel of the stone giving and breaking under my touch and jumped away. Watching with satisfaction as the building crumbled and collapsed, but I kept my eyes on my enemy. Making sure I remained aware of my surroundings, the bastard wouldn't surprise me again.

I saw him coming, this time, as he exploded from the smoking heap of the decimated building, swinging his axe in a horizontal arc. Waiting until the last second, I shot my foot up to connect with the flat of the blade and sent it careening upwards. The grunt could only watch in surprise as his weapon was forced to go off course while he was still moving forwards from his own momentum. I cocked my fist back before driving it into his passing face, and he disappeared through another building while his weapon finally lost its' upwards momentum and fell to dig itself into the dirt road with the handle sticking up into the air.

I wouldn't take another chance with this guy, however, and shot forward to follow my opponent. I moved just in time to avoid a fist heading for my face, manoeuvring my body so it flew past the fist and arm, but I drove my knee upwards to drive it into his chest again. We both went flying, but where I skidded along the damaged wooden floor, he crashed through several more buildings.

I was half way through standing when I crumpled to the ground when a sudden pain in my chest stole my ability to stand and robbed my lungs of air. It burned and I felt like I was drowning, I coughed violently until I threw up again, this time it was entirely blood that landed on the ground. Yet no matter how much of the red liquid I removed from my airways, they didn't open up again.

'_Pierced lung'_ my mind supplied, I cursed around another hacking fit. I forced myself to stand, no matter how it intensified the burning feeling in my pierced lung. One arm wrapped around my torso in an instinctive attempt to protect the damaged organ, and looked through my good eye to try and find my opponent.

As it turned out, I didn't need to find him.

By sheer luck, I leaned to the side far enough to dodge his kick aimed for my head, I swerved out of range of his follow up punch. I stumbled back from his attacks, dodging them by a hairs breath or moving just enough for them to be glancing blows that did minimal damage. How many times had I put this guy through a bunch of buildings? How many crushing blows had I delivered?

'_In the Blues they're crushing blows, you're in the Grand Line now, if you can't get stronger then you better get out or die'_ that annoyingly helpful voice in my head whispered, it was obviously not going to disappear anytime soon if it's consistency was anything to go by. Well, that just settled it then.

After stumbling back from another blow, I planted my feet firm and far apart, knees bent and elbow tucked into my side. Ducking under the next attack I threw my fist and slammed it into the man's stomach, the force of the blow made a shockwave pulse through us and the air, causing displaced wind to swirl and whip around us, picking up dust and debris as it went.

I didn't stop there, cocking back other my fist, I drove it into the man's face this time, another shockwave and violent whirlwind swirled around us. Again and again I struck him, driving him farther and farther back until he was forced against a wall, then I punched him through that as well, and then we were back in the main street. Breathing heavily, I acknowledged what I was about to do.

Pulling my fist back as far it would go, I gave a pained yell as I put as much force as could behind the swing. I felt his skull cave in before he flew away from me like a bullet, his feet following his head, and then he crashed violently into his ship. The structure exploded as the middle was torn asunder and nearly split in half. Even from this distance I heard the sound of the impact, and the screams of the crew.

I managed to stand tall for a total of three seconds before pain crippled me once again, piercing me even through the haze of adrenalin and endorphins. I gave a soundless scream and a pitiful whimper as I collapsed onto the ground, darkness beginning to creep along the edges of my vision. Whether from the pain or the blood loss, I didn't know.

As I welcomed the black numbness of unconsciousness, I saw distant and blurred figures beginning to converge and move.

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**I'll be the first to admit it, I'm not very good with fight-scenes. Hopefully I did alright, and some feedback would be wonderful. Reviews are welcome, and I hope that you all enjoyed this chapter. I tried to add some realism into it, with Alex realising that while she is strong, she is nowhere near the level she needs to be to make it in the New World.**

**Reminder: Maroon hoodie, not red, help me find the typos! Please and thank you!**

**R&amp;R!**

**Imma Outta here!**


	12. Another Hurdle

**Okay, first of all, sorry for taking so long. No real excuse, really. And second of all: Check this out! 3 communities, 50 reviews, 99 favourites, 116 followers, and 8,811 views. I am so happy! Thank you for the continued support, and here's another chapter!**

**Read and enjoy!**

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"Hello again"

"'Hello again' yourself" I shot back unhappily, crossing my arms and glaring half-heartedly at the moving picture of me in the operation room. A small miracle I hadn't accidently destroyed it during my fight.

Yeah, I had died, again. Well, sort of, not quite. My heart had stopped, and I had blacked out, but it had started again and I was technically alive, my mind just wasn't with my soul at the moment, which is why I was here with Death watching to see if I lived through my injuries _this _time. In mind, at least, everything else was in the operating room.

"You seem rather calm" he commented idly, and I fought the urge to roll my eyes.

"I was the first time" I replied like it was obvious and, to a certain point, it was. I could somehow feel he was smirking, and shook of the weird feeling of _knowing_ despite having no proof of said knowledge being truth.

"Indeed"

'_Indeed my ass'_ I thought blithely, watching as my pulse 'beeped' in a steady rhythm on the monitor.

"By the way" I said suddenly "I know that you sent me here to help and everything, but your explanation doesn't actually explain much. _Why_ was I chosen, when so many would have been better choices? _How_ did I end up here? While I'm sure you're powers are great and everything, I doubt you would be able to transcend dimensions and reapply the fabric of reality so I could actually find my own role in this world" I asked, sending a questioning look to the tall male. At least, I assume he's male.

"Ah, I was wondering when you would ask" he said, as though commenting on the weather, I sweat-dropped and sent him a flat look.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" I deadpanned, and he shrugged in reply. I huffed in irritation and stuff my hands in my maroon hoodie. "Well?" I asked after a few moments of silence, and Death sighed melodramatically.

"So impatient"

"I can be perfectly patient, just not with you" I countered easily, and he sighed again, only this time with fond exasperation.

"Back in your world, in the country called America, they developed a machine that can send a soul into another reality, another world. However, they had to remove their soul from their current vessel"

"So die" I stated.

"Just so" he nodded "However, because of this the visitors believed they were invincible and died foolishly, and the people of your world ceased their attempts of traveling to this world. The machine they used to travel here was shut down, but it still had the power for a limited amount of 'jumps' so to speak. Subsequently, at random intervals when someone would die they would be transferred to this world in a new, if not damaged, vessel" he gave me a pointed look, and I wondered if I was the only one to actually be injured in their 'awakening' to this world.

"America" I pondered for a moment before chuckling "well, conspiracy theorists would go nuts for this" I grinned a little as I shook my head and looked back at the image that was practically luminescent. Seriously, how did this guy live here? Even I could make this place more homely, like a rug and a few chairs, maybe a lamp. Eternal sentient beings are weird.

"_Patient is stable" _and echoing male voice pierced the silence that had settled _"surgery complete"_ he said after a few more minutes of digging through my innards, and started sewing me up.

"Well, that's my cue" I sighed and rolled my shoulders, a familiar tingling sensation beginning to settle as I drifted from the void to the land of the living. From what I knew, this wasn't the land of the dead; it was a lot like limbo, apparently.

_Wait a minute_.

"Grimm!" I called out suddenly, feeling very far away and yet very close to the ancient being. He made a humming noise that affirmed he heard me "How can I see the spirits of the dead? Why can I see scenes of the past?" I tried to raise my voice to make up for the distant feeling, but my voice only gently echoed in the darkness.

"There's not time to explain" he stated calmly, like I wasn't running out of time to figure out those weird occurrences "Go to Alabasta, and see the old woman who knows of me" his voice was a whispering resonance, reverberating through my mind as I slipped into the familiar embrace of ethereal sleep.

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"Son of a bitch" was the first thing I said when I woke, muttering it darkly as I thought of the melodramatic sneaky little git that was the Grimm Reaper. Why is it never easy? Why can't they ever make it simple? I mean, seriously, is it too much to ask?

Something moved in the corner of my vision, and for a moment I thought Boris was there, falling out of his seat again, and that I was back at The Islands with Maria in the kitchen making me her special soup that almost always came with a scolding.

But then the world returned to its clarity and my mind came into focus, reminding me that I was a long distance from family and friends. A nurse dressed in white came into my vision, staring at me with shock and cautious hope, along with a tiny mix of awe and a little fear. Why would she be afraid? Oh yeah, I totalled her town.

I gave a small smile, too tired to do much else, and the nurse gave a quick 'don't move' before practically teleporting out of the room with an excited smile. I raised a brow at the open door, wondering how I could move with the amount of morphine running through my system.

Barely a minute later, a doctor was practically running through said open door and skidding to a stop at the foot of my bed. I chuckled a little at how frazzled he looked, and fought a smile when I saw him stare at my medical records. It was stupidly funny how confused he looked as he stared at the information, even as those looks changed to surprise and awe. Why was everything funny? Eh, I blame the drugs.

"Uh… Traveller…" the doctor started, his eyes flicking between me and the paper a couple of times before he cleared his throat and took on a more professional approach "Traveller, do you remember what happened to you?" he asked, and I nodded in return.

"I was fighting a pirate captain and, in the process, accidently demolished your town. Sorry about that, by the way" I paused to see if he had any reaction to that, when none seemed forth coming, I continued "I managed to beat him, but I had pierced my lung, probably by a broken rib, I think I hurt my shoulder but I know I dislocated my knee and after the fight I passed out" I finished my summary of the past events.

A long silence stretched through the room as the doctor started writing several things down, and I briefly wondered what he was writing about, but figured it was probably my recount of what happened. I doubt anyone else had knowledge of that fight, since they were either absent or dead.

"How long was I out for?" I asked suddenly, the man looked up from his work before a moment before looking back down to continue his work. This guy was very professional.

"Twelve days"

Oh. Well. Holy shit…

"Damn" I breathed, slowly taking a breath and finding my movements were restricted. Why is it restricted? Oh, pierced lung, right, right…

"It seems you'll be out of action for quite some time…" I tuned him out shortly after he began. I already could heal abnormally quickly. Something that took a person week's to get over only took me, like, a fortnight or something. Besides, I had someplace to be.

Alabasta. The woman who knows of Death. Jesus Christ, like this wasn't hard _enough._

I closed my eyes and allowed the drugs to do their job and send me into sleep. The more I slept, the faster my body could repair itself, and the sooner I would be out of here.

My time at the hospital was much like the last time, minus the annoying reporter and suspicious doctors. The ones here seemed mostly unfazed by my 'name' and just took it as it was. I guess the Grand Line was used to the stranger things in life, which helped me immensely because after two weeks I was walking out of the hospital, albeit with crutches, and explicit instructions _not to overdo it._

This time, I would listen and obey. A pierced lung and broken rib was not like a dislocated ankle or torn leg, I couldn't just walk this off and continue on my merry way. This injury was more dangerous and could easily prove lethal if I were to break the still-healing bone again. I didn't need that sort of complication to slow me down, I had work to do!

The town was well into construction, and despite the fact I had near destroyed their home, everyone was merry and chipper and didn't seem at all bothered by my presence. It was nice. I went down to the docks, where the least amount of damage was, surprisingly, and found my pack under some rubble. I was incredibly relieved no damage had been done to the items inside or the pack itself, and adjusted it on my back snuggly, the familiar weight a comfort that I didn't know I had missed.

I grabbed my personal journal and opened it up, reading through my personal thoughts and little poems and writings, all the little collectibles I had picked up during my journey. A Cronus flower, a chip of Laboon's tooth, the heather flower, a picture of Captain Keys and his crew dancing and drinking and having fun, all of these had importance to me in some way, my personal life could be read in these pages, my heart and soul was contained within this little book. Cliché, I know, but true nonetheless.

Pulling out a small transparent packet from my pocket, I taped it into just underneath a newspaper picture of me fighting the axe-wielding maniac, how someone had managed to take it was beyond me, and wrote 'bone shards of my broken rib' to the side with a little arrow pointing to the little square packet that held the white shards. They had been removed during the surgery, apparently; otherwise they would have caused a lot of pain and even cause internal bleeding. Thus, they were here. It was a little strange to see my bone outside of my body, since it was meant to stay _inside_ my body and yet I was staring at some pieces of myself right now.

Revelations, it seems, is the theme for this island.

Closing the book, I tucked it safely away and after a little searching found a ship that would take me to the next island, hopefully I wouldn't have to worry about any fights for a while.

* * *

**Yeah... this one is a bit short. Sorry. The next one should be longer and, generally, more pleasant. Have you noticed that in nearly every chapter I have Alex either fighting or injured in some way? Well, that's gonna change for a chapter or two. It's gonna be all happiness and fluff and all that lovely stuff.**

**R&amp;R **

**Imma Outta Here!**


	13. In These Moments

**First of all: I am _so sorry_ for my long absence. A mix of reasons for that one. Mostly laziness and writers block. **

**On another note: THANK YOU FOR EVERYONES SUPPORT! You've all been a huge help, reading through the reviews has really helped me spark up what I need to continue. **

**ANWERS TO QUESTIONS! I know a lot of you have been asking when Alex is gonna meet the Whitebeard Pirates, and I can tell you that's still several chapters away. She still needs to go to Alabasta to get some answers. Also, Nopparitari: Thank you for reminding me! I had planned on having Alex start learning some of them earlier on, but completely forgot. So thank you for that!  
SecretDewDrop: Yes, her picture _mostly_ matches her appearance. Her hair is bright orange, like, hot coal orange. So keep that in mind. **

**I think that's it for questions... if you have any, just ask! Now on with the show! Read &amp; Enjoy!**

* * *

Sometimes, I can't figure out what's worse. The Fates screwing with me, or showing a tad bit of kindness. The first one is just annoying and often difficult, while the other is just scary and induces paranoia. However, it seems that a little good luck has come my way.

My injuries are mostly healed, but still relatively sore. It's easy to deal with, as long as I don't strain myself too much otherwise it gets a little painful to breathe and my knee starts throbbing. Luckily, I am more than accustomed to my water walking technique, and the island I'm heading to is only three days away by boat. Which means it'll be about a day and a half for me if I keep up my pace. I've got about another three hours before the island becomes visible on the horizon, and the whole way has been nothing but salty wind, splashing water and the serene silence of the ocean. I'm half-expecting to get shot at, but every time I look around there's nothing but blue.

I've forgone my zigzag pattern, going for streaks of straight-lined gliding to increase my efficiency. After all, the pattern is mainly for better control for manoeuvrability, especially for short distances and places with a bunch of turns. I kicked off the water again once I had slowed down significantly and shot forward again, the repetitive motion was soothing to my mind and I let my thoughts wander.

I honestly wonder if this is how the CP agents begin to learn their 'Moonwalk' technique. What was it called in Japanese? Shigan? No, that was the finger pistol technique. It definitely had a 'G' in it, though. Ge... Gecko… Geppo! The technique that allows you to walk on air, which would be really helpful for me, considering how often I travel, and I doubt I'll be able to rely on passing ships anymore.

Looking up at the sky, I saw some birds gliding overhead, and remembered the time I was running through the treetops and surprising the birds nesting there. Well, no time like the present right? Now, how the hell does CP9 do it?

Kicking off into the air, leaving a colossal column of water behind me, I kicked at the air and found myself upside down, and exactly where I was. I hadn't moved at all. Damn, this was harder than I thought it would be, and I didn't expect it to be easy either.

Twisting so I would land on the water feet first, I shot into the air again and this time tucked one of my legs up to my chest. Taking a deep breath, I shot my foot down faster than I could register and experienced a brief moment of the feeling of elevation before I began descending again. Quickly, I did the same with my other foot, and experienced the same sensation of that standstill moment when you've stopped ascending and you're about to start falling. I tried it again, actually paying attention this time, and found myself slowing my descent. Not actually using the Geppo but pretty close.

I used this to slowly return to the oceans ever shifting surface, and continued my high speed journey to the next island, using my log pose to make sure I'm going in the right direction. Well, while I sure as hell couldn't use Geppo _properly_ yet, I was definitely getting somewhere. I could feel the strain on my legs beginning to set in from only those few tries, and I understood why these techniques took years to learn and master. However, as arrogant as it sounds, I had a feeling I was an exception to this.

I spent the rest of the trip contemplating learning the other Six Powers, though I swear there are seven, called the Rokushiki originally if I remember correctly. Still, they would be good abilities to learn, but unlike CP9 I wouldn't be relying on them solely. By the time I decided that it would be a good idea to learn them, the island was in sight and inclosing rapidly. With a grin half excited and half relieved, I put more effort into my kicks and shot across the water even faster, intent on finding a shower to wash off the built up grime the last day and a half from travelling and a bed to rest my aching muscles.

The port town I found, after a little bit of walking along the shore, was not what I was expecting. The majority of the town was nothing but rubble and debris and in the process of being cleaned out and rebuilt. The welcome I received was anything but welcoming, if the reaction of the townsfolk was anything to go by. They had screamed and yelled and ran away, which had been just awkward for me.

A group of men with rifles had returned a few minutes later, but I had kindly taken to waiting for them so as to avoid more panic. There were seven of them, and while six aimed their guns at me the seventh stepped forward.

"Who are you and what do you want?" he said, his voice authoritative and commanding. His clothes were tattered, but I could clearly see that it was a Navy uniform, so he must be the head of command here, or the next in the line of command, if the actual leader was dead.

"I go by Traveller, and I would appreciate rest and safety" I replied in a calm and polite tone. Best not to aggravate these people, a wounded animal is more dangerous than one unhurt.

The man's face flickered for a moment in recognition, which made me narrow my eyes. Seemingly aware of my sudden suspicion, the man ordered for his men to stand down. They did so reluctantly, and I found myself under scrutiny from the commander.

"Are you really Traveller? The one who fought those pirates a month ago?" he asked, and his men began to murmur among themselves and stare at me in surprise. I rubbed the back of my neck, uncomfortable with the attention I was getting. Hey, I've been spending the majority of my time alone, social interaction has become something near-foreign to me.

"One and the same" I gave a quick grin before looking around with a more serious expression "not to pry, but what happened here?" I asked, though it was pretty obvious what happened, but I figured it would get the soldiers to drop the stares. It did, sort of.

"Pirates" the commander said "pirates happened, the same ones that you defeated. They came here earlier and, as you can see, destroyed our home. We've rebuilt the town farther from the shoreline, but the docks have been near impossible to get to. It wasn't until recently we've received help…" he trailed off, obviously getting lost in thought if the distant look in his eyes was anything to go by. He was staring off towards the docks, and I turned to look at the ruined area.

And I saw a familiar ship.

"Well, come on. Best let everyone know you're not a threat early on. Besides, you look like you could use a good bath and a place to rest" at the grin he gave me I looked down and saw that he was right. While it wasn't immediately obvious, the layers of salt that had built up on my clothes definitely hinted at my lack of bathing. I returned the grin with one of my own and eagerly followed the group towards the back of the town.

It wasn't immediately obvious, but gradually the debris became less and less and the rubble was pushed to the side and cleaned away, leaving a clear road and damaged buildings. When the first, undamaged, building appeared I had to stop and stare because it just looked so out of place amongst the damaged town. Granted the area was much cleaner, and looked more like ancient ruins than a destroyed town. Still, I followed the Marines and watched as the place shifted from desolate destruction to tentatively inhabited, and finally to an active hive of life.

The townsfolk were understandably wary of my presence, and I managed to ignore the suspicious stares for the most part, but when I saw a familiar flash of red and a deep voice calling out instructions and orders, the world suddenly zeroed in on the one person I had wanted to see for a long time.

"Ronan!" I yelled out happily, a large smile splitting my face. The tanned man turned at his name and a matching smile bloomed on his features at the sight of me. Something inside me relaxed and uncoiled at the sight of him whole and hale. I ran through the crowd and tackled the taller man in an exuberant hug, he laughed and span around with the momentum before setting me on my feet and mussing up my already wild hair. I didn't even bother trying to swipe away his hand, I was too happy at seeing a familiar face. Looking around, I saw members of Ronan's crew and waved and hugged and laughed as I greeted them and received a warm welcome in return. Something warm filled my heart, and I felt like it could burst from the strength of the emotions I was feeling, but I didn't mind it at all. It was a good feeling and I had missed them all so much, I hadn't even realised how much I had missed them until now.

The town was quick to follow the Marines example, the women dragging me off to bathe and talk. They asked me about my travels, and Ronan and his crew, and talked about the town and the people and everything. Then I was being seated next to Ronan and eating dinner, for it had gotten dark, and talking again about my adventures and listened to Ronan and his crew as they regaled me with their own experiences since I had left. We were seated at short tables, sitting on mats and cushions, which loosely circled a blazing bomb fire with many other people eating and talking and laughing around us. And before I knew it I was in my sleeping bag and swag and sleep had taken me.

The next morning I was slow to rise, for I was sore and stiff, and the events of yesterday were slow to come to the forefront of my mind as I scanned the room I was in. It was a large one, like a town hall, and had various sleeping bags and mattresses and boxes strewn about. I could see people sleeping, some milling about and others getting ready for the day as best they could. Rubbing my eyes, I yawned and stretched like a cat, before slowly rising to my feet and grabbing some spare clothes and a towel. The way to the bathhouse was a quick one, with me remembering most of the way and receiving directions for when I couldn't recognise anything.

After a bath and a change of clothes, I wandered around a bit and watched the adults and children mingle and work and live after such a devastating attack. The kids were mostly unchanged, I noticed, and were running around and playing or helping out. While some would send wary looks towards the ocean now and then, or would go quiet suddenly, they seemed to be able to bounce back pretty quickly. The adults were similar, but the haunted looks in their eyes told me this wouldn't leave them for a while.

Eventually I made it back to the town hall, and packed away my gear and tucked it in a corner before returning to the outside. I went towards the wreckage of the town and talked quickly with the man in charge of organising the effort to clear out the debris. A minute later I was helping the people clean up their town. Lifting large wooden beams or moving large stones and rubble, and helping coordinate the distribution of workers to the places that needed the most work. Some of Ronan's crew came by and started helping out, and we struck up conversation while we worked. One young recruit called Willem, a dirty blonde boy with mismatched green and blue eyes, was asking me about my fight with the Armed Pirates, as they had been called.

"Well, then I fell to the ground and it felt like someone had shoved a hot poker through my lungs, which wasn't far off because my rib had broken and pierced my lung" I paused to lift up what had once been a wooden beam to a large building and tossed it into the large pile of other wooden pieces "Well, as you can imagine I was in a tonne of pain and the bastard was still not down…" I continued to tell the story, smiling at the amazed gasps and looks of awe that were sent my way by my fellow labourers. It had become something of a favourite for the sailors, and the children of the island. Not a full day has passed and already little kids have been crowding me begging for stories, many times I've had to stop working altogether to sit down and retell the story, and then they would ask for more.

"I see you've acquired quite the fan group" I familiar voice said once I had finished recollecting the fight to the Marines. I turned with a smile on my face to look at Ronan, then his words registered and I looked behind him to see another group of kids standing off to the side, clearly waiting for another chance to kidnap me. I shook my head and looked back to the tall redhead.

"Not my fault they have good taste" I quipped, causing him laugh and muss up my hair again. I futilely tried to swat his hand away, but still ended up with having a mess of hair. I poked my tongue at him, to which he only grinned at in reply. Evil man.

"Indeed" he chuckled and shook his head "Before I get too side-tracked, some of the women would like to talk to you in the Main Hall, you remember how to get there?" he asked, and I shrugged with a grin.

"Mostly" was my reply. He sighed and gestured for me to follow, which I did after a quick goodbye to Ronan's men. We talked a little of our journeys since parting at Logue Town, and the people we met and things like that. Soon we were at the Main Hall, and once some of the women caught sight of me I was quickly pulled away and brought into their group.

"Traveller?" one of the younger women asked. She was blonde and timid but a classical beauty. I nodded in reply and looked around at the sizeable group of females. There was a lot of murmuring for a few seconds before one of the older women put her hand up and the group was silent.

Okay… that was weird.

"We have a request to make" the commanding woman asked. She had silver hair and didn't look a day over thirty five, and possessed an air of someone used to authority and power. By the looks of the other women, I'd definitely say she was in charge.

"I'm not joining a cult!" I said immediately, raising my hands and taking a step back. The group stared at me for a long time before bursting out into rambunctious laughter. I sweat-dropped as I watched them practically fall over laughing, some leaning against each other for support and most were clutching their stomachs. I awkwardly sent a sidelong look towards the door, wondering if I could learn _'Shave'_ or _'Soru'_ this early, though I'm pretty sure I've already learned it in my own unconventional way.

"No, no, we're not here to _initiate _you or anything" the silver haired woman said, her voice full of mirth as she wiped away a tear "We just wanted to ask if you would be willing to watch the children for a few days, normally one of us would do it but it seems as though you would have better luck keeping them under control" she explained, amusement evident in her gaze. I turned my head slightly and coughed awkwardly into my fist, this woman is not the type of civilian I'm used to.

"Uh, sure, I guess. Where are they staying?" I asked, trying to get back to business. Though I have a feeling I will never live this down, if the giggles are anything to go by.

Ten minutes later I was standing in front of a three story building with double doors and a white picket fence surrounding it. I could hear the sounds of children beyond, and when I went around the building to check the backyard, I found at least a dozen children running around screaming and laughing. Going back to the front entrance, I wondered why I had agreed to this before opening the door and stepping into the threshold.

The volume notably increased, and the pounding of running feet added to the chaotic rhythm of the day care. Rubbing the back of my neck, I walked further into the open space, noting how it broke off to three hallways, and how noise came from each one. Left, right and straight, sound came from all directions. Shrugging, I took the left hallway and after a short walk found myself standing in a kitchen and dining room. A young woman, probably only a few years my senior, was making formula's with a deft hand at insane speeds. She had her black hair in a short ponytail that bobbed as she moved, short bangs framed a soft face and chocolate coloured eyes.

"Excuse-"

"Ah!" the young woman screamed and fumbled with the container of powdered formula she had been holding, unfortunately it fell from her hands as she tried to turn around and catch the container at once. I shot forward and caught the container before it hit the ground, and steadied the dark haired woman.

"Uh… sorry about that" I said once I was certain the woman wouldn't topple over, stepping back and placing the container on the bench. The woman placed a hand over her heart and took a deep breath, clearly calming down from her moment of panic, before smiling cheerfully at me.

"It's okay, I wasn't paying attention" she replied and stuck her hand out "I'm Amelia by the way, nice to meet you Traveller" I took her hand and shook it on autopilot as I blinked at her surprise. She seemed to sense my surprise because she laughed and explained that of course she knew about me, and had seen me helping out with clearing the rubble earlier this morning, plus the newspaper articles and all the gossip going around.

I gave a sheepish smile in return. It's hard to believe that I'm someone famous around here, even if it's only with these few islands, but it's still awkward to be recognised by so many people and yet not know them myself.

Shrugging off my maroon hoodie and placing it on the coat rack by the hallway entrance, I turned to the dark haired woman with an encouraging smile. "So, I was told my mission was crowd control?" I said jokingly, which earned a laugh out of her.

"Sort of" Amelia said, turning back to the bottles "You'll mostly be working with the older kids, but I'll need help with the younger ones during bed and feeding time" she explained, and I nodded in understanding. I've babysat my younger cousins and helped raise my nephew when my eldest sister had been having financial troubles, granted that had been a long time ago, so maybe some of the skills I picked up would be a bit rusty.

How old would my nephew be now? Six at least and probably driving his mother crazy, she would probably have a proper job now, since her son is in school she'll have time to get things sorted properly. I wonder how the others were doing, I was the runt in a litter of seven so they had all graduated and were living their own lives by the time…

I shook my head of those thoughts. That wasn't my world anymore, it wasn't home, couldn't be. I focused again on Amelia and smiled, she hadn't noticed my lapse, luckily, and was still fixing up formulas like a professional bartender would fix up drinks.

"Cool, so where would I find the wee devils?" I asked, and the young girl gave a pointed look to a glass screen door across from a wide dining area separating the kitchen from said screen door. Beyond it I could see kids as old as twelve and young as four running around and making so much noise I'm surprised I didn't notice it before. I walked over to the door and, with a fleeting look over my shoulder, opened the door and stepped outside.

"G'day kids!" I practically yelled at the top of my lungs. There was silence for a few brief seconds before excitement washed over the backyard like a tidal wave and I was surrounded on all sides by people who barely reached my chest.

"Traveller! What you doing her-"

"Tell us a story-"

"Did you really-"

"Can you show us-"

A loud whistle blew through the air, making the kids stop and quiet down. I removed my thumb and middle finger from my lips and looked down at the group. All in all it was about fifteen kids, though I wasn't really counting, and now that all of them were quiet I could actually think.

"Hello everyone. As you know, my name is Traveller and I will be watching over you while the adults work on rebuilding and salvaging what they can of your town. Now, first rule: to avoid confusion…" I looked around and picked up a stick that had been painted red "this is the 'talking stick', whoever holds it during a group conversation is the one who talks and everyone listens quietly, if you have a question you must raise your hand and wait to be given permission. Second rule: whenever I whistle like I just did, you are all to gather around me and quietly wait for instructions or whatever I have to say. Rule three: no bullying of any kind, if that happens I will put you in a box or something until you apologise. Play nice; since we're here together we don't want to make enemies. Rule number four: any other rules I make up will be reasonable and may be up for discussion. Any questions?" a number of hands rose, and I bit back a sigh. This was gonna be a _long_ day.

"Yes, the one in the pink flower shirt" I point to the little girl, who smiled brightly up at me.

"Why are you called Traveller?" she asked, and all the kids turned their heads to stare at me expectantly. I blinked at the child, who looked around five, and then glanced around to find a spot to sit down. There was a bench under a tree with a nice patch of grass surrounding it. Gesturing for the kids to follow, I walked over and sat down on the seat and the kids huddled on the grass at my feet. Putting the designated 'talking stick' down I paused and tried to think of the best way to explain this to a bunch of children.

"Do you know what a moniker is?" when nobody answered, I continued "a moniker is like a nickname, something that everyone calls you even if they don't know you. Like… 'Whitebeard' or 'Red Haired Shanks', does that help?" at the sounds of understanding and affirmed nods, I went on "now, my moniker is Traveller, because I travel a lot, but also because people don't know my real name –no, I'm not telling you, it's secret- I move around and I don't settle, so people gave me the name that suited me. That's why I'm called Traveller" I finished, deciding not to tell them that it was my adopted parents that had given me that moniker in the first place.

"Another question?" I asked, and that's how I spent most of my day. Answering questions and telling stories, with the young kids hanging on every word. Of course I had to be vague and gloss over the harsher parts or anything that might give them nightmares, but it seemed that I was able to keep the kids entertained. During the lunch and dinner portions of the day, I had them lined up in two rows and had them marching proudly to the door to eat and drink. Nap time was a blessing; even though the older kids didn't have to sleep they would help clean things up or ask me different questions that I couldn't answer in front of the younger kids. It was fun, then the day was over and I was tucking them into bed and giving them kisses and cuddles to keep the nightmares away.

"Goodnight everyone" I called as I turned off the light, though several glow-in-the-dark stickers and a few nightlights littered the room, it was still dark enough for everyone to sleep easily.

"Goodnight!" they chorused back, and I quietly slid out and closed the door. I stayed there for a few moments, a smile on my lips as a warm feeling blossomed in my chest. Being able to say goodnight, and have someone there to reply, really was something people took for granted. I wonder what it would be like to have a family of my own, and a place to call home.

I gave a short, soundless laugh that was more a quick exhale and shook my head. There's no way that would happen. I can't imagine myself doing anything other than travelling, until my hair is grey and my feet are worn. I wouldn't mind, one day, having a family but considering my circumstances I just don't see that happening.

I turned away from the door and walked down the hall, intent on returning to my pack and swag for a good night's sleep.

There's no way I could have that kind of life.

The next few days were like that. Wake up, chat with some people, go to the day care and entertain the kids. Most of my stories were exhausted by then, but I had plenty of games from my childhood to keep them occupied. It seemed amazing to them how much I knew, and the number of games I showed them really shot their admiration levels up through the roof. Sometimes the adults, typically parents or some of the women from the group would come by and chat or check up on their kids. Other times Ronan and his group would pop by and I would have the kids playing some form of tag or another while I chatted with them.

"So, the ports opened up today" Ronan announced casually at dinner, I was seated at his right and surrounded by Marines. I blinked up at him, and the implications of those words quickly settled. They would be leaving soon, and so should I actually. I've lingered here too long, and it would be best for me to leave soon, probably tomorrow or the day after.

"I see, how long will you stay?" I asked, taking another bite of food. It had all been rationed before I even got here, but the townsfolk had emergency store rooms for situations like this, so we never felt like we were actually rationing. They simply had that much stored away.

"Another few days, a week at most, to make sure they'll be stable until another patrol comes in and then we set sail. What about you?" he asked and the table quieted considerably. I caught myself shifting uncomfortably and looked down at my plate. Why was I so nervous to speak? Was I guilty? About what?

"I plan on leaving soon, tomorrow or maybe the day after" I announced, and regretted it almost immediately. The sailors immediately protested such an early departure, but it was Ronan's thoughtful frown that caught my attention.

"You could always join us" he said quietly, but loud enough to be heard and all the Marines immediately backed up their captain.

"Right! You could still see the world like you want to"

"And it would be safer for everyone"

"I bet you could learn a lot more fighting styles sailing with us"

I reeled back at the ardour of the crewmen, surprised at just how much they wanted me to stay with them. I could tell they already had things planned in case I said yes, and the light in their eyes shone bright at the prospect of me joining them, of becoming a Marine myself. Even Ronan seemed to be excited at his men's enthusiasm, his posture changing just enough to belie his emotions right now. My throat closed with the emotion bubbling up inside my chest, and for a long moment I couldn't breathe, I could only stare at everyone in awe and poorly hidden joy.

I almost said yes.

"I can't" I said honestly "I want to, but there are things I need to do, and I can't- not until I've… when I'm done, if the offer is still open, I'll join" I smiled sadly at them, and while everyone was notably dampened by my refusal, it didn't take much for their spirits to lift again.

"Well, you better hurry up, auntie" Willem teased with a grin and a wink. I blushed and tried to scowl at the boy, but it only seemed to make the sailors laugh uproariously. The kids had started calling me auntie yesterday, it had surprised me at first but now it was simply a part of me. I responded to it like I would my name.

"Meanie" I muttered, causing everyone to fall into another round of laughter, and for the rest of dinner the subject was forgotten. We talked and joked, and I found myself losing track of time. I needed to get to bed if I wanted to wake up in time for the Day Care. Excusing myself, I rose and bid everyone a goodnight.

However, I was surprised to find that my footsteps being matched, by Ronan of all people. When I gave him a questioning look, he simply smiled. I rolled my eyes and continued on, mostly ignoring the taller male.

I didn't notice he had stopped until I was several steps ahead, and when I turned to him in question I couldn't help but be confused at the serious look on his face. The lights in the streets casted his face in shadow and light, making his features seem almost otherworldly as the shadows danced across his face.

"You know they won't ignore you forever, soon you'll have to choose a side. You can't sit on the fence for much longer" he said, his tone was stern but soft. A sense of foreboding washed over me, like a thick blanket, heavy and smothering. I felt my features melt into a blank, calm expression, an automatic response. I lowered my head in acknowledgement to his words.

"I know, but I just need a little more time" I responded calmly, and felt confusion when his look turned slightly sad.

"You may not like the price you'll have to pay for that time" he responded. I looked away, unable to handle what his eyes revealed, and turned to continue walking towards the Main Hall.

"I've already given my life, what else could they take?"

Little did I know, the Fates could take so much more.

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**This one is longer than usual. And it was supposed to be a happy chapter... Good? Bad? Did I miss anything? Let me know!**

**Again, thank you to everyone who has stuck by me for so long! R&amp;R and a good day to you all!**


	14. Memories To Cherish

**Hello! Sorry I've been taking so long, but I'm not gonna go one about that. Anyways!**

**Questions to be answered: MaryMarina, first of all thank you for your review and compliments. Really helped with me getting this chapter done. Now, yes there is a pairing, and I'm gonna be really mean and not telling! (It's not Luffy, though), and your question is not out of line at all! You're welcome to ask any questions!**

**Trich: First things first, thank you for your wonderful words. Now don't forget that Alex, and to a point Ronan, is playing a very different game to the rest of the One Piece world. She's out to change things, events, and that will make enemies. The question is, who will be her enemies? For the time being, what she's done is small, like dropping pebbles in a pond. But soon she's gonna have to make her defining move, her fist big act, that will define what side she's on. Sooner or later, she's gonna have to drop a big rock in that pond, and change things indefinitely, for better or worse.**

**Akayuki Novak: Probably not. :)**

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The next day I found myself standing in the backyard of the Day Care with several cans of paint and paint brushes at my feet, waiting for the kids to finish their lunch. I had spent most of the morning trying to figure out a goodbye gift for the kids, and I believe I've figured out something that should be fun for everyone.

"Well, you seem chipper" Ronan commented from his spot on the fence. I glanced at him, and noted he had his entire crew with him. The twenty men lounged about, obviously waiting for the kids to come outside and see their surprise.

"Gee, what gave me away?" I drawled with a raised brow and a smirk, which quickly grew into a full blown smile when the kids began rushing out into the backyard with Amelia herding some of the younger kids out the door.

"G'day everyone!" I called, causing everyone to turn in my direction and stare at me in surprise. Amelia smiled and the kids cheered and swarmed me with a unanimous yell of 'auntie', cheering and calling and making a general ruckus. Putting my fingers to my lips, I whistled long and loud and the kids immediately stopped and waited patiently. I smiled down at them, and knelt so I was at eye-level with most of them.

"Hey kids" I said softly, looking at every one of them before continuing "You know how you asked why I was called Traveller?" at their nods, I took a breath "Well, it's time I start doing that again. I'm going to continue travelling, tomorrow" I said, my voice kind but resolute. The kids all immediately began to protest and even Amelia looked unhappy with the prospect of me leaving.

I sighed but let them have their say for a while before a whistled again, smiling when they stopped to listen again. Standing up, I looked to Amelia and gave a pointed look to the plain brick wall of the Day Care, who gave a knowing smile and nodded before moving to stand next to me.

"However, I'm not gonna leave without giving you all something to remember me by" and with a flourish, jumped over the kids with a twist and flip and landed by the wall with the cans of brightly coloured pain and the pile of paintbrushes. With a smug grin at their 'ah's and 'ooh's I presented to them the activity everyone would be doing today. Besides, the wall looked rather dull, so why not liven it up a little?

"Come on kiddies! And adults" I added with a grin to the Marines "Grab a paintbrush! Let's make this a fun day!" and like that, paintbrushes were grabbed, pain cans were opened and chaos ensued. The kids immediately began making stick figures, flowers, and all sorts of weird and wonderful, not to mention colourful, creations. The Marines made ships and clouds, since they were higher, laughing and playing with the kids. I myself, not being much of an artist but I like to think I'm decent, started making constellations of the stars and doing rainbows. Ronan was particularly nice and made the Southern Cross for me, and he was a pretty good artist it seemed.

I jumped when I felt something cold on my cheek for a second, and turned to see a grinning Ronan, a paintbrush dipped in blue in his hand. Putting a hand to my affected cheek, I pulled back and saw a matching blue on my fingertips.

"Oi!" I yelled, trying to be scolding and serious, but the grin that sprung on my lips just completely ruined it. So with a war cry of vengeance, I attacked the fellow redhead with my purple paint. The other Marines saw, and rose to defend their captain, only for Amelia to swoop in from behind and get them all with some green paint. The kids followed suit, and what had been a relatively peaceful session in paintwork dove into a battle of colours. Some abandoned their brushes, instead dunking their hands in the paint and attacking all who ventured near, while others flicked paint with deadly accuracy, though some just went with the 'spray and pray' method, but whose going to judge?

There was screaming and laughing, many kids dogpiled some of the Marines, covering them in multi-coloured wounds, and _everyone_ went and gained up on me, so I was no better in that regard, but I got my revenge. Getting a nice pink streak in various people's hair, including Ronan's and most of the Marines, and Amelia had a nice handprint of orange on her back.

It was a good long while before we calmed down enough to see what our shenanigans had done. Most of the artwork was covered, but no one could really care with the amount of fun we had. The kids simply went about 'fixing' their work, everyone at this point having forgone paintbrushes and simply used their hands. Amelia came up with the idea for everyone to put a single handprint up on the high-end of the wall, and so the Marines, Amelia and I lifted kids up so they could put a handprint on the wall. The kids insisted we put ours on too, to which we did. I put an orange and maroon handprint besides Amelia's violet and red one and the Marines, in typical Marine fashion, put blue and white handprints around them, Ronan being the only different one, and put a red one besides mine.

"Home colours" he muttered, and I couldn't help but smile at the thought. Red, white and blue, Colours of the British Flag, and the Australian Flag, it was like a little piece of home.

"We should get pictures!" Amelia chimed in, a little giddy it seems from all the fun, and the kids cheered along with the Marines. I laughed and nodded, and Ronan just sighed in mock exasperation. The young brunette dashed inside before reappearing barely a moment later; apparently giddiness makes people fast, with a camera and stand. Huh, I didn't know they had camera's like that here. Go figure.

With a deft, experience hand, Amelia set the camera up and put in on timer. During that time, the kids were organised to stand or sit at the front while the adults, and myself, stood at the back in front of the wall. A space left for Amelia so she could run back without having to worry about tripping or anything.

The first picture was the organised proper one, everyone facing the camera and smiling. The next one, as the kids proclaimed they had to have more than one picture, was very silly. Someone had somehow, in the twenty seconds it took to prep the next picture, had managed to put Ronan's hair into two low pigtails. One of the larger Marines even managed to sweep him up in a bridal-hold right before the camera took the picture, and with the pink streak in his hair it truly was priceless. The Marines were all in states of silly faces and weird poses, many of the kids having mounted a surprise attack on them so there was surprise and even a little bit of terror mixed in. And finally, many of the kids had taken to using Amelia and I as trees, climbing up us like giant squirrels and clinging to our limbs. I had to grab a hold of one kid as he climbed over the back of my shoulder before he toppled over. The resulting picture was hilarious, and definitely required copies.

The next one was a bit more organised. Sure, the kids were still a bit rambunctious, but as most of the adults were holding one or two in their arms or on their shoulders and some were clinging to legs, we still managed to get a rather good shot. Everyone smiling and laughing, and Ronan had freed his hair. I was holding a little girl with her face streaked with markings that looked more like war paint, the same boy that nearly toppled over my shoulder was clinging to me like a koala, his head peaking over my shoulder with the biggest grin, and an older boy hugging my waist and giving the camera a victory sign.

Putting the kids down after the final picture, the kids were herded back into the Day Care for lunch. Nobody even bothered to get the kids to clean themselves, plus the adults, and me, were just as messy as the kids. So, with no small amount of enthusiasm, we joined the kids for lunch. It was possibly the loudest meal I've ever had.

And I loved every second of it.

* * *

It wasn't until late afternoon that I managed to leave the Day Care, though they insisted they go to the docks to say goodbye. I had sighed but relented under the force of so many puppy-eyed looks. Damn my weakness for cute things. But on the plus side, we all got to take a bath together at the public baths. The Marines had to bathe in a separate area, though, but a few of the older boys joined them. It took a surprisingly short amount of time to get everyone cleaned up, though Amelia had laughingly said that they didn't like bath time. I guess no kid would want to spend so much time bathing when there was fun to be had.

As we passed the main residential area I stopped by the Main Hall to grab my pack, which quickly lead to the kids telling everyone I was leaving today, which meant that there had to be a celebration, which meant that I couldn't leave until a_fter_ the celebration and that of course meant waiting. However, due to the organisation of the townsfolk and the Navy men, by the time it became dark the party was ready to begin. And as such, toasts were made and thanks were given. Then the music started up and ale was passed around. I soon found myself lost amongst the dancing and talking and laughing, the playing and story-telling. I didn't eat or drink much, despite how much everyone was pushing I do, to the point I suspect they were trying to get me drunk so I couldn't leave, but I was high off the laughter and the music.

"May I cut in?" I blinked and turned to see Ronan, out of his uniform for once, offering his hand in an invitation to dance. I smiled up at my latest dance partner, who relinquished my hands and stepped away with a nod and a grin, before taking the redheads hand. After a tug and spin, I was in his arms and moving to the lively beat.

"Why am I not surprised you can dance?" I laughed as I twirled again, my feet jumping with the beat and body moving in time with Ronan's.

"I'm a swordsman, a lot of our styles are based off dances" he replied easily, taking my waist to launch us into another series of faced paced steps. It was a common folkdance that every island seemed to know. But it was lively and fun and drew more laughs than some of the conversations the non-dancers were having.

"Really, is that so? How come I've never seen a blade on you?" I asked cheekily, holding onto his shoulders as he lifted me by my waist, doing a half-turn before settling me down again.

"One of my men carry it for me, gives me the advantage of surprise" he smirked down at me and I rolled my eyes. Obviously he wasn't exactly humble, if the conversations we've had before are any indication, but I couldn't hold back my grin as we weaved through the other dancers in a simple pattern.

The music ended with a large boom from the drum, and we parted to bow to each other, though women were meant to curtsy but considering I'm not wearing a dress I don't see why I should bother, and walked into the crowd smiling and breathing a little heavier. We headed to the tables laden with food, and took a plate each.

We ate and talked, laughing and even danced a few more times, everyone would stop by at least once and join our conversations. Though the Marines were the ones that came by the most often, and the kids kept pulling me away to dance with them or tell them stories. By the end of my tenth dance, several hours after the party began, the celebrations began to die down and it became calmer. The music became slower, and I looked around to find, finally, that there was now a lapse in attention. Sneaking off to the side, I picked up my bag and retreated to the shadows of the alleys. Looking back, I couldn't help but smile as everyone had fun amongst the firelight. Walking down to the docks, avoiding the main road and going mostly by rooftop or back alleys, I looked out at the expanse of ocean.

I couldn't just leave, could I? Looking back at the light that glowed from the main square, the view of people dancing hidden by buildings and rubble, and then back to the ocean before me, I knew that just vanishing like this would be to cruel to the kindly people. So, I ripped out a page from my journal and wrote out a little thank you note, admittedly short but heartfelt all the same. I set it on one of the docks support beams and placed a rock on to keep it from flying away with the wind. There, now I won't have any regret over my sneaking away.

With a nod to myself, and a small smile that I refuse to call wistful directed to the town, I turned to the ocean and shot away in a small explosion of wind. Going as far as I could before hitting the water again, hoping nobody would notice. I didn't look back; I kept to my path, and continued on my way to Alabasta.

I never noticed the sad eyes following my departure.

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**Good? Bad? It's shorter than normal, admittedly, so sorry about that. Let me know your opinion, and don't be afraid to ask questions!**

**R&amp;R and a good day/night/morning/arvo to all! **

***mutters* I can't believe you've stuck with me for so long.**


	15. Crazy Fun For Crazy Ones

**Hey there! Okay. I know this chapter is a lot longer than normal ones but I figured I'd give you guys something special. A small thank you for everyone whose stuck with me so long, but on the bright side, WE'VE FINALLY REACHED ALABASTA! WHOOHOO! Praise the Lord it has been done!**

**Okay. Q&amp;A time!**

**j8a8c8y8: Unfortunately, we're not going to be seeing the Whitebeard Pirates for a while. She still needs to go through one or two things first, but it will happen eventually! I promise!**

**SNicole25: What will she find in Alabasta? Well, you're about to find out! There's going to be laughter and fighting, some fun and some craziness!**

**Groundhog: Unfortunately, Alexandra has decided it would be best for her not to meet the rest of the crew until much later. Don't forget she's still a good few years ahead of when Luffy begins his journey, and since she's already in the Grand Line, she's kind of vetoed that for when they reach the Grand Line themselves. Eventually, at least.**

**AnimeKpop7: Well, it might have been Ronan... or it might have been one of the kids, or the townsfolk, or the Marines, or some mysterious stranger... Nah, just kidding. It was Ronan.**

**And Lastly, Guest: Sorry, but I would rather not spoil that. I will say she will eventually join a crew! Though it will become rather obvious when she eventually meets said crew.**

**There are a lot of 'eventually's in here...**

**Anyways. Thank you everyone who reviewed! Hopefully you all enjoy this chapter!**

**Read &amp; Enjoy!**

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"_There's an old fashioned Ford made of rubber tin and board along the road to Gundagai!"_ I sang my fourth song as I approached the desert kingdom. At the nearest island to Alabasta, I had hitched a ride to rest my feet and so I didn't scare the hell out of anyone by arriving on foot, from the ocean. Yeah, that would scare a few people at the docks. I had paid the captain, and was helping ready the cargo to be unloaded at the docks.

"_The radiators hissing! And half the engines missing! The oil tanks running dry!"_ I heaved another heavy load that would've needed three men to lift normally, and headed up to the deck to place the crate with the others. The men kindly moving out of my way, clearly they were grateful for the extra help.

"_There's water the in petrol! And sand in the gears! And it hasn't seen a garage for more than forty years"_ I placed the box down and dusted off my hands, looking to the nearby port that was closing in fast, and grinned _"But oh gosh! Hear a roar! When the peddle hits the floor, along the road to Gundagai!"_ the men had long since gotten used to the odd song, knowing that some countries had it rough and the only way to keep up the mood was making songs that, while made perfect sense to them, made no sense to anyone else. They simply applied that logic to me, and so mostly ignored my singing, but I did catch a few humming the tune under their breath. I feel a little proud about that.

"Alright, that's everything! Thank you for your help, miss" the captain said with a smile, he refused to call me Traveller, saying it wasn't a proper name for a young lass, but since I refused to give out my birth name he simply started calling me 'miss'. Can't say I mind much. Though I'm beginning to wonder what point there is in keeping my name secret… ah well, it's fun if nothing else.

I gave a smile of my own, "no problem, it was actually a bit of fun sailing with you, hopefully we'll meet again, and on good terms!" I laughed a bit at the thought, and the captain only shook his head before turning around to order his men about. A minute later, I was waving the men goodbye as I made my way through the thick throng of people, intent on buying some suitable clothes and a meal; it had been two weeks since my last decent meal.

The town was larger than I expected, but trade was obviously good and I found myself drawn to a few little knickknacks but knew I couldn't buy them. They would only break, sooner or later. Still, it wasn't hard to find a stall that sold desert-appropriate clothing, and was soon fitted into some simple beige and brown fabrics. I bought a hat instead of the usual headset, and with a happy wave made my way out to grab a bite to eat. The crew I was with had been stuck on rations for the last part of their trip, which had been about a week before I popped up and joined them.

I looked around for a few minutes, and easily came across a pretty good place. With a smile, I quickly headed towards the diner, and looked around when I noticed the crowd noticeably thinned around the windows and entrance. At I moved to open the door, the window to my right broke as a man was sent flying through it and landed on the ground with a loud 'thud'. I blinked down at the man as he twitched, and my smile grew exponentially. Yup, definitely a good place to grab a bite. And with that thought, I opened the door and stepped inside to a suddenly silent room.

Looking around, I noticed all eyes were on me, and most weren't very friendly. Ignoring the looks, I went to the bar and sat on a stool by a big fella. Giving a grin to the man, I waited for the bartender to scurry by and looked at me with apprehension.

"What can I get you?" he asked hurriedly, obviously wanting me to order quickly so he can serve the other patrons. I looked at the chalkboard menu, and shrugged.

"I'll just have some meat and ale, thanks" he gave a nod and scurried off to the kitchen to tell the chefs the order. I raised a brow as he disappeared out one of the back doors. "Twitchy little fellow, ain't he?" I muttered idly.

"Aye, he's a squirrel alright!" the big man laughed and I sent a surprised look up to the guy, fighting a grin of my own. He was tall and broad, built like a tank, he had a scruffy black beard and warm brown eyes. I blinked at the familiar face. Squinting a little, I tilted my head.

"I have I seen you before?" I muttered, trying to think back. No way had I met him in the Blues, maybe it had been in the newspaper?

"Eh?" the dark eyed man blinked down at me, scratching his scruffy black hair in confusion, obviously trying to remember if he's seen me. "Nah, I don't remember every seeing ya, probably seen my Wanted poster though" he patted his hands down his shirt and pockets, before pulling out a strip of tattered paper and handing it to me. Curiosity won the short battle and I took the parchment, I unfolded it and found a younger version of the man sitting next to me.

"'Woodsman' Jack, reward one-hundred-and-eighty million" I gave a low whistle, finally remembering where I saw this "There was a board full of wanted posters a few islands back, I was browsing to see if there was anyone I knew, no wonder you were familiar. Your poster was one of the oldest" I handed the paper back, noting the man's proud grin and giving a small one in return. I looked around and noticed that most of these men bore the Woodsman's mark somewhere, two axes crossed over one another to make an 'X' sign, so they were his crew then. The squirrelly man returned with my food and drink, and I slipped him the bills as he placed the plate and mug down. He took it quickly, and without thanks, before running off to refill some patron's cups.

"Ha! You've got some friends in the pirating business, do ye?" he asked boisterously, smiling broadly. I shook my head and took a large draught of my ale. It burned a little, but it was good ale.

"Sort of, that's why I was looking" I sent a grin up to the larger man "So, what brings you here? A little dry for a pirate, I would imagine" I said, watching the drink swirl in my cup before setting it down to devour my meat. It was medium done, so it was juicy and well marinated. Some might say overly so, but I've always liked strong flavours and heavy foods when I'm hungry. The lighter stuff is more for snacks or deserts in my opinion.

"Ah, just restocking supplies, hit a nasty storm two weeks back, completely threw us off course! Nearly had Hammond over here go overboard! Eh Hammond?" the man yelled and addressed a dark haired man with a grey fedora and sleek but casual outfit, the crew laughed and the young man rolled his eyes in clear annoyance but the light pink tinging his cheeks gave him away. I laughed along with the men, surprised to see such a lean man in a crew full of big and burly pirates, but despite his apparent irritation, I could tell he was happy the crew liked him. Ah, the sea truly is a place for the weird and wonderful.

"And yourself? What's brought such a wee thing way out this way?" I turned on the big man, sending an indignant look up at him.

"'Wee thing'? I'll have you know I am an adult and taller than most women!" I crossed my arms childishly, completely ruining the intended effect, and the crowd burst into rambunctious laughter once again. Despite myself, I ended up grinning right back at everyone. "But yeah nah, I'm looking for someone. Don't know her name, all I got was 'she knows of death'. Completely unhelpful" I groused, propping an elbow on the bar top and resting my cheek in my palm, Jack gave a few sympathetic pats on my back and I heaved a sigh, realising just how stuck I was. I really had no clue on where the find the woman, and Alabasta was a huge kingdom, even with my not-quite-mastered-Geppo it would take weeks to get around the whole country, and even then I might miss the woman.

"Ah, that does sound like a bind. Well, I know the answer to this problem!" I looked up at the dark haired man in surprise, was it possibly he knew who the woman was? However, my hopes were quickly dashed when he grabbed a jug and refilled my cup with the honey coloured drink. I sent him an incredulous look, before I broke into a fit of laughter. I have been stressing about finding this lady for weeks, and this guy just turns around and tells me to drink away my problems?

"Okay, so it's not the answer, but everything seems better after a few mugs of ale!" the men in the room cheered, and soon barrels were brought out and cups were never empty. I simply sighed and gave in to the craziness, letting my inhibitions go and downed mug after mug, devouring my food that I ordered regularly, because I did not want to drink on an empty stomach. By my eighth mug, which was about the size of a pint, I was beginning to feel the effects of the alcohol.

"And ya know vwat dat bastard goes 'n do?" Jack wailed, rivers of tears streaming down his face "H-he just gooes an' stcheels all me loot! Does-don't ev'n fin'sh da bloody fight! Jus-just roons off, toodle-doo, bye-bye, an-an-an" he really starts to cry now, wailing as he puts his arm over his eyes, unable to continue the heart-jerking story. Not sure what's it about anymore, but my eyes are misty and I'm patting his arm empathetically.

"Damn shame, sorry to hear that" I don't know how I keep my words from garbling, but I manage it, and I don't question it "Maybe you'll get a rematch, one day" the big man gives me the biggest puppy-dog-eye look I've ever seen, a look of innocent hope etch on his rugged face.

"You-you think so?" and he did a little sniffle, and I nodded enthusiastically.

"Uh-huh! It's not fair! So I'm sure you'll meet 'em again!" he stares down at me for a long while, before his eyes well up with tears again and he starts crying harder, scooping me up in a big hug and crushing me to his chest. But I don't mind. He's like a big puppy and I love puppies, he's my cute little puppy and I love him. My puppy.

I hug him back as best I can, patting his head as he starts blubbering. I look around and his crew are watching the tear-jerking scene with tears in their eyes, many sniffing and trying to stop the tears and some outright cry 'so beautiful' and start to wail. Unhappy with their sadness, I wiggle out of the big man's hold and go to each and every one of the sad crewmen and give them a hug and a pat. Hammond, the most sober of the lot, is smiling brightly when it's his turn, and returns the hug enthusiastically.

"You are such a nice little lady!" he announces, and the crew cheers up again faster than one can blink. And we're back to laughing and joking and drinking beer and ale and just getting completely smashed. By my fourteenth pint, I stumble away from the bar and head for the door, but I quickly stop and do a loopy U-turn and went back for my pack. Picking it up, and nearly toppling over, I went back to the door.

"Hey! Kit! Where-ya goin'?" someone called, and I blinked at the name. They had started calling me little cat six mugs ago, which delve into kitty three mugs after that, but I guess my names Kit now. Cool. Nice. I like it. It's cute. It's not often I get to be cute, cause I'm too busy being cool and badass.

"I gotta go home… oh wait!" I burst out into a fit of hysterical laughter "I don't live here!" the men quickly joined in, and we laughed for a good few minutes, before I eventually turned back to the door. I did three spins before I span the right amount to face the door, and I reached for the doorknob.

"Oi! Kit! Where you goin'?" someone else called out, and I blinked before turning to the crowd.

"I gotta go… gotta go… Huh, I'm not sure" the group laughed, and I pouted at them unhappily. Not my fault I couldn't remember where to go! But soon I forgot why I was mad and ended up laughing with them, I giggled so hard I fell back against the door and kept giggling. I was gonna die from giggling so hard! I couldn't breathe, but that just made it funnier!

Suddenly the wall I was leaning on disappeared, and I fell back with a yelp and a squeak. Or was it a squeak and a yelp? I don't know, but now I was half out of the building and half in, staring up at the pretty stars, pretty, pretty stars, and when did the wall turn into a door? Why would it do that? Oh wait, I start giggling again, walls can't change into doors! I gasped suddenly, looking up at the man staring down at me with confusion.

"Did you eat the Door-Door Fruit?!" I accused, pointing a finger up at him "You can't do that! That's not allowed! You're gonna ruin the story!" and the crowd inside the bar grumbled and yelled their agreements, but then they asked what kind of story was it, and then someone started singing a nursery rhyme and everyone fell into laughter once more.

Rolling onto my stomach, I pushed myself into a crouching position, but then the floor had to be really mean and tilt so I fell back and landed on my butt. I looked up at the stranger, and then behind him.

"Mr. Squirrel!" I cheered, throwing my hands up like a child. The man jumped back, startled, and I pouted at that. I'm not scary! I'm too little to be scary! Lots-a people say so! Like-like-like… people!

"Ah miss, gentlemen, the diner is closed. I'm afraid you'll have to leave" the party-pooper said, his shouldered gun glinting in the lamplight. I pouted but wobbled up onto my feet, grabbing my pack and swinging it onto my back, though I think I did more swinging. The gentlemen cried out in indignation at the treatment, but I just blew a raspberry at the two meanie-people.

"Fine! Let's move it to the street! Come on and follow me~!" I sang, and the boys scrambled to follow, taking barrels and mugs with them and smiling smugly at the two meanies.

"We're goin' wiff 'er!"

"We get to go an' you don't!"

We continued down the street, before I turned to them suddenly "right-e-o gents! We need a place to stay for the night!" I said seriously, or as seriously as I can when that lamppost is doing a silly jig. The men quickly started heading for the docks, towards their ship, and said we can all stay there for the night, and then go looking for the magic lady! I cheered and got a piggyback from one of the bigger guys, we all made it to the docks, and the deck, and the cabins, and then someone tripped and fell on some sacks of flour and I huffed out in jealously. I want a little nest!

Looking around, I gasped in delight. There were a bunch of little nests hanging about! Giggling, I ran wobbly and jumped onto the little nest with dead-on accuracy, but the little nest moved before I could land and I fell over it. Oh, no it didn't. My bag helped me fly too far, so I'll just put it down by the nest! Putting it down, I clambered into my little nest and yipped happily. Wait, birds don't yip. But I'm a Kit! A little fox, and foxes yip! But foxes don't live in nests, do they? They live in cosy little burrows, but there are no burrows here. But why can't a fox live in a nest.

"I'll be Kit the nester then!" I decided with a firm nod of my head. I'll be a little fox that lives in a nest. There! Problem solved!

"Goodnight everyone!" I cheered and everyone who was still awake, and that number was quickly dwindling, cheered me a 'goodnight' back. Which made me very happy, and I flopped back into my little nest and fell right asleep! Like a good little bird-fox is supposed to do!

* * *

Something was poking at my eyes. Not a something, many somethings. Many tiny little somethings that were very sharp and were stinging my retina's with cruel merciless persistence. Opening my eyes a little, I quickly shut them at the painful burst of light.

"_Who the fuck turned on the light?"_ I growled out, causing someone to yelp and a loud 'thump' to be heard. Though I think that was my head, and I groaned from the horrible pounding in my skull that resonated with my heartbeat. Rolling over, I sighed as the light was blocked out. Trying again, I opened my eyes and found that, while they still hurt, at least I could see. And what I saw made me stare.

There were at least twenty men staring at me with wary caution and a bit of fear. Blinking, I squinted at them, but that only made a few pale. Many of them looked like they had pounding headaches, much like me, and nobody looked especially chipper this morning.

"Um… who… who are you?" the leanest of the group, some dude with a fedora settled on his head at an askew angle, asked.

"_Who the fuck wants to know?"_ many of the men stepped back at my tone of voice, and I felt a vicious sort of pleasure to see them suffering and afraid. Let them suffer, that way I am not alone in my suffering.

"Uh-I… my name is Hammond, um… do-do you remember what happened last night?" I glared at him suspiciously, and he quickly hid behind some big burly guy. I blinked and then squinted at him, to which he admirably did not flinch from, though his hand did twitch in the tell-tale sign of wanting to draw a weapon.

"Hammond… Woodsman Jack?" I mumbled, and slowly the night before unravelled itself in my mind. I sighed and rubbed my eyes, slowly rising from the warmth of the hammock I had claimed as my bed. _"Uh, fuck. Someone go and get me some fucking water"_ I forced out, my mood darkening with the knowledge I had a fucking hangover. First night in Alabasta and I decide to get pissed off my face, fan-fucking-tastic. Certainly seemed like a good idea at the time, but now… I will fucking murder.

A glass of water appeared in my vision, along with some tablets, and I downed them and the water in one go and muttered a hoarse 'thank you' but at least now I don't sound like everything I say is a death threat. Looking back to the crew, I sighed again and shook my head.

"Sorry about that. First time getting drunk" at that they all seem to relax at once.

"Ah, that'll explain it. You scared us quite a bit there, but don't you worry lass, you'll get used to it" Jack said, keeping his voice wonderfully low. I gave a shaky smile, and ran my tongue over my teeth and grimaced, which caused the man to chuckle. "Aye, terrible thing to wake up to, there's a bathroom just over there, yer welcome to it" he added, to which I happily grabbed my bag and trotted over to the gestured door. I did not run, as my legs have seemingly forgotten that they can move.

I immediately set to brushing my teeth, spending a good two minutes attacking the grime that had built up, before washing out my mouth with the clean water. The powerful mint having somewhat awakened my tastebuds so now nothing tasted like bloody sawdust anymore. I also had a quick shower and changed my clothes, luckily my maroon hoodie was clean so I could wear that along with a sports bra and some black leggings and a pair of shorts. I didn't bother putting on my bandages for my feet, they were fine now anyway. Looking down at my feet, I sat down and actually _looked_ at the soles.

At first glance, they looked like a normal person's sole, but then I tapped at one of them and giggled. The skin had hardened and actually made a thick _'tap, tap, tap'_ noise, and it was smooth too, not super smooth but it wasn't all cracked and flaky or had any ridges or anything. I wasn't ticklish anymore either, back in my old world my feet had been stupidly sensitive, but now the hardened skin allowed me some level of protection.

Standing up, I exited the steamy bathroom with my clothes packed away in my bag with said bag slung over my shoulder. My head was still pounding, and felt like it was full of water, and my eyes hurt whenever the light got too intense, but it wasn't so bad now that I had freshened up a bit. One of the men, Bobby I remember slowly, was waiting for me and escorted me to breakfast. Most it was liquid based, and the group as a whole avoided dry foods, to which I thanked every god I knew of for that.

I dug in like a madman, eating enough for three people, but the crew were just as enthusiastic in their food. Everyone didn't talk much, except to ask for a drink or to pass one thing or another, but by the end of it everyone was feeling much better. I sighed and relaxed in my seat.

"So, when are you guys leaving?" I asked, taking a sip of my drink. My headache has all but disappeared, all that is left is a slight heaviness in my head, and my thoughts were a bit more lethargic, but beyond that there was little sign I had ever been willing to commit mass murder just an hour ago.

"This afternoon, we want to stay a little longer to recover and check to see if there's anything we missed" I nodded at Hammonds words, and finished my drink. Standing, I rolled my shoulders and enjoyed the 'pops' that resonated in them.

"Cool, thanks for the meal, and helping me in general. Is there anything I can help you with in return?" I asked, and Jack went deep in thought for several seconds.

"Hm… we're actually getting a bit of trouble from a… businessman who's refusing to sell us some sorely needed materials. If you could perhaps… persuade him, we would be most obliged" he sent me a grin that was much more… not sinister, but mischievous. I sent a matching grin, already looking towards the prospect of causing trouble. Though I wasn't sure how much help I would be.

"As long as I don't get kicked out of Alabasta before I can find the woman I'm looking for, I would be happy to help" the grin he sent my way at my words was perfectly predatory. He stood and we shook on it, both quite happy to have something to do besides wallow in our post-drinking recovery.

It didn't take long for us to finish up and head out to the more active part of the docks, where there were warehouses and a lot more people wearing suits among those who were just wearing work clothes. The whole crew had decided to come along, to add some 'incentive' they had said, grinning all the way.

"Hang on" I paused as my thoughts finally caught up and I realised something. Turning to Jack, I looked up at him suspiciously, "why do you think I would be of any help, I'm not exactly intimidating" I gestured to myself with a wave of my hand, not looking away from Jack's slightly surprised countenance.

"You're Traveller, aren't you?" he asked, I nodded automatically, by now I was so used to being called Traveller it seemed like a second name. He gestured to one of the men, Ken I believe, and he pulled out a strip of paper from his pocket and handed it to me. Unfolding the paper, I realised it was several sheets and that they were newspaper articles, all of them about me or ones that I was involved in.

"You're becoming rather famous. Taking on those pirates and helping the Marines in the Blues, beating that pirate crew all on your own, and helping those people on that island. A lot of pirates are beginning to take notice of you, Traveller, and no doubt the Government has as well. I have no doubt this weasel of a businessman has heard of you, and will be more willing to confer with us once he sees you with us" Jack finished with a grin. I stared up at him in surprise and looked to each of the crewmen in confirmation.

"Well" I started "Well. That is… I wasn't expecting that" I admitted, shaking my head and handing the papers back to Ken. I honestly hadn't expected to become too notable for a long while yet, seems being anonymous isn't going to work out as well as I'd hoped. Oh well, you can't win them all, as they say.

So with a nod and a sheepish grin, I continued to follow the crew of big burly men, and one lean fedora-wearing guy, to a shady part of the docks and entered a large warehouse with Jack. The rest were to wait outside just in case.

Much to my surprise, there was a smartly dressed man with light blonde hair waiting for us. That immediately put me on guard, shifting my stance wider and evening out my centre of gravity subtly. I pulled my hands out of my pockets and let them hang limply at my sides, looking around the dark warehouse, there were only two lights one, that was full of boxes and crates of various sizes and shapes, all stacked high. It made a veritable maze where hundreds of people could be hiding, and it made the hairs on the back of my neck rise.

"Ah, I knew you would come back, my large friend, they always do. Have you changed your mind and accepted my deal?" he asked, seemingly not noticing me, but then his blue eyes slid to mine and I froze. My body stiffened and I stopped breathing altogether. There was something very dangerous about this man, something that made me want to turn and run, something was telling my instincts that whatever this was wasn't worth it and to just leave. But I steeled myself, I wasn't here for myself, I was here to help Jack and his crew. They were nice enough to house me and feed me, so no matter how freaky this guy was, I wasn't going to turn tail and run.

"Actually, I was here to tell you my offer is still open and hoping that I could _persuade_ you to accept" Jack replied, his usual manner of speaking completely absent in the face of this man. It seemed he sensed it too, but I doubt the captain was the type of guy to back down from a challenge, and that was exactly what the businessman was offering. A challenge.

"Oh?" the man chuckled "how quaint, and I suspect you brought in the Traveller to help _persuade_ me" it wasn't a question, but it certainly proved he knew of me. Knew of my reputation, at least, which was beginning to become a bit of an issue, I think; I might need to go underground for a while after this, a bit of MIA to become forgotten and overlooked for a little while longer.

"I figured it might help" I could hear the grin in my friends' voice, though I didn't check to look. I kept my eyes firmly on the businessman.

Said businessman sighed "You know how I hate to haggle, how disappointing" he clapped his hands twice and the rest of the lights turned on, flooding the building with light, and armed men began pouring in from the crates and surrounded us in a wide circle. Well, that escalated quickly. How the hell did we not see this coming? Christ, I feel like an idiot.

"Shit" I cursed and shifted into a lower stance with my knees bent and my hands up so they protected my centre. I moved to stand back to back with Jack, who had drawn his huge axe from his back and held it expertly in his hands. I scanned the mob until my eyes landed on the smiling businessman, his blonde hair practically glowing in the light as his sharp blue eyes locked on mine again. He suddenly looked a lot more sinister, and I realised what had me so on edge when I caught a disturbing glint in this mans' eyes. He was mad. Not like Gutter had been, it was a calculated madness, unwavering and controlled, but present and needing be released. And he was letting it loose on us.

"No matter, your bounties will be easily recompensing my time that you've rudely wasted" he said mildly, and suddenly the sounds of fighting could be heard from beyond the warehouse door, which had been closed shortly after they entered. Yells and screams pierced the heavy wood and metal barrier, and I felt Jack shaking violently.

"Sonofabitch!" I hissed, tapping Jack twice on the leg before I shot towards the door. Pushing off the ground I jumped high above the mob and, with a quick prayer, pushed my legs at a horizontal angle with as much force as I could manage.

The effect was instantaneous and shocking. I was suddenly shooting through the air, straight towards the door. I only just managed to angle my body so my knee slammed into the main barrier between Jack and his crew, the door caved from the sudden force and became misshapen enough for the crew to be seen while the metal bent and broke under my touch. The sight of their captain gave the men an extra boost and they rallied with a cheer, taking down the remaining men quickly before charging in. I pushed off the door as it began to crumble and landed in the middle of the crowd between the captain and his crew. Spinning low, I kicked out the legs of the men around me, causing a bit of a domino effect, as one man fell he bumped into a guy behind him who stumbled into the guy next to him and it basically cleared a way for the crew to reach the captain, who was currently fighting off some guy with a sword.

By the time everyone had rallied to their captain, the mass had reorganised themselves and was beginning to close in on them. I looked around, trying to figure out a way to get through this, when an arrow shot past me. I grabbed it on reflex, stopping it from hitting Bobby in the arm, and snapped it with the pressure of my grip alone. That started a chain reaction, and suddenly they were charging at us with weapons raised and war cries echoing.

I threw my fist into the nearest thug, putting more strength than necessary into the blow, which caused him to ricochet into the crowd, taking out at least a dozen men with him. I immediately had to duck underneath a sword swipe, but before I could turn to take care of him he was flung away by a powerful blow to the head via a staff. I glanced behind me to see Hammond send me a quick grin before returning to the fight. I huffed out a short laugh before returning to the fight.

As the crowd began to thin, the men seemed to realise this fight was not one they would be winning. Granted, while several of us were wounded, and certainly worse for wear, we were still more than a match for a mob of half-trained thugs. They seemed to realise this too, and began to become more disorganised. After another powerful blow from Jack's axe, taking out over a dozen men in one swing, the mob finally gave up and scattered, running away or turning on each other, some tried to steal the merchandise in the warehouse while some still tried to get in a lucky shot at them, using the chaos and confusion as a cover. But that didn't work out so well.

Breathing heavily, I looked around the chaos with a smile. We won, basically, and considering how bad the odds had been before, I'd say we were bloody lucky.

Suddenly I felt a shiver go down my spine, breaking the happy, accomplished feeling and replacing it with one of cold foreboding. I whirled around and tried to locate the source of it, but no matter where I looked I couldn't see anything, and no one was doing anything suspicious- wait…

Where was the businessman?

Seeing as my spot on the ground yielded little, I jumped up to the top of a high stack of crates for a better vantage point. Looking around again, I tried to spy for the blonde haired man, but found nothing. He must have fled, then, sometimes during the fighting. I frowned at the thought, that didn't sound right at all, when one thought about it, he didn't seem like a guy that would leave a job unfinished.

Something heavy and cold settled in my stomach, and I stood from my crouched position. Looking around again, I noticed the pattern that the crates had been stacked and how it made everyone who wanted to go anywhere from the main entrance go through the paths they made. The only real open space was the area in front of the main entrance, which was mostly cluttered no from debris and bodies. I tried to figure out a reason for it, but with all the noise it was impossible to think.

"_Everybody shut up!_" I screamed out in frustration and a sudden, harsh, silence fell on the air as everybody froze from their fighting, running and looting. I glared at everyone for a moment before my ears pricked at a sound that hadn't been heard over the noise.

_Beep. Beep. Beep._

I looked down at the crate beneath my feet; the sound was coming from the crate. Moving off it, I ripped the top of the crate off and peered inside. All colour drained from my face and I whirled to the crew and hired thugs alike.

"Run!" I was all I could scream, panic overriding my ability to talk properly, but luckily Jack and his crew listened immediately. Dropping what they were carrying and bolting for the wide open entrance. I jumped down and bodily _threw_ some of the slower members out through the exit, ignoring the mob men that were scurrying around me, trying to run and steal at the same time. We all made it just out of the warehouse before it was engulfed in a raging inferno, the force of the blast easily throwing us off our feet. We all flew for dozens of metres before hitting the ground hard and fast, skidding to a stop or crashing into buildings, machinery or cargo.

I blacked out the first time I slammed into the ground.

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**Ah yes, the dreaded cliff-hanger.**

**So, good? Bad? Miss anything? Any questions? Yeah, not to put here...**

**R&amp;R and see ya!**


	16. Mystery And Truth

**Admittedly, this one is shorter than others, but on the plus side it has a serious reveal for the plot, and it ends her time in Alabasta! Hopefully you enjoy this one as much as the others!**

**Also, GlassedGamer pointed out that I have a habit with ending chapters on certain types of cliff-hangers, and I will try to dial those down.**

**Thank you everyone who has continued to support me through all of this, I never would have gotten this far without all of you!**

**Anyways, Read &amp; Enjoy!**

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The world came back slowly, colours muted and blurred and everything sounding muffled and underwater. My movements were slow and sluggish. Pushing myself up slowly I shake my head in an attempt to clear the heaviness from it. A powerful heat assaulted my skin, and I turned to see a raging inferno engulfing everything it touched. It took several moments for the image to register, and I slowly turned to try and look around me. One of my arms gave out as I turned and I fell on my side, gravity forcing my weight to tilt too far and I tipped onto my back, a soundless breath of air escaping me. My head turned to one side, and I saw Jack and some of his crew on the ground several metres from me, their weight having given them greater momentum and sending them farther away. I tried to sit up, but something suddenly on my chest pushed me back down. I had to squint when I looked up, the sun nearly directly above what was blocking me. It was a person, male by the silhouette, thin and… pointing something at me.

"Shame I lost so much merchandise" the man said, and I belatedly realised this was the businessman from before. "But no matter, as I said before, your bounties will compensate wondrously for my losses" the 'click' sound of a gun being taken off the safety setting echoed loudly in my ears. Oh no, no way was I dying here. Not now, and certainly not by this stupid little ferret.

Adrenalin flooded my system like lightning, and while my head was not yet clear, my instincts allowed me a knee-jerk reaction that bypassed my brain. My right fist swung in an, admittedly, too-wide arc to do any real damage, but when it struck the man's bent knee that was attached to the foot on my chest, it shocked and hurt him enough to disrupt his balance. I sluggishly rolled away as he stumbled, and forced myself onto my hands and knees; tilting my heavy head just enough to see the man recover his balance and aim the gun angrily at me. Before he could pull the trigger, though, he froze. For several long seconds he did not move, with me expecting to be shot the whole time, but when he did the unexpected happened.

He lowered his gun.

"Sorry it took me so long" he said, sheepishly, which just confused me "but the guy was surprisingly hard to pin down" he added before throwing the gun away. I stared at him for a long, confused minute as he went about helping the pirates stand up and making sure they were alright.

"Damn, you've broken some bones, captain. Where's Richie?" the businessman looked around as he helping the captain stand tall. The crew was beginning to regroup and my head was clearing enough for me to slowly stand.

"Oh, sorry Traveller, are you okay?" the businessman approached me, but I stumbled back and tried to settle in a defensive stance despite still being off-kilter.

"What the hell is going on?" I growled out, tilting to one side a little too far and stumbling to stay on my feet. God, I really hit my head hard.

"What? Oh! Hang on, hang on. Jack, can you please restrain this guy?" he asked, starring up at Jack, who nodded and grabbed both his arms. A moment passed before the man slumped, unconscious. My brows furrowed at the sudden fainting spell, and a groan somewhere behind had me spinning. Unfortunately, my balance and my head were still shoddy and I tripped over myself and fell on my back, rather inelegantly, if I do say so myself.

Hammond, the dark haired fedora wearing pirate, was slowly rising from his position on the ground. His shoulder was dislocated and he was bleeding from somewhere on his scalp but didn't seem to notice. I stared in confusion, not comprehending what the hell was going on. I slowly pushed myself into a sitting position, and looked between the young pirate and the captain holding the businessman, waiting for an explanation.

"Well…" Hammond began slowly, wincing as he touched his shoulder. I got up slowly and began towards him, settling beside him I started inspecting his shoulder, just a standard dislocation by the looks, luckily. I looked up to him, silently asking for permission, and he nodded stiffly. A push and a pop later, his shoulder was back in place and he was notably paler, but otherwise took the whole thing well.

"Well" he said again, thickly, and cleared his throat "a few days ago, I ate a Devil Fruit. Not sure what it was called, but I was able to… possess people, I guess, afterwards" I looked at him for a long time, processing what he just said. Normally it wouldn't take me this long, but I suspect I've managed to hurt my head pretty badly. Damn, another hospital visit.

"And why didn't we just use you in the beginning, instead of going through all this trouble?" I asked slowly, my shock morphing into a flat, unimpressed, look. Hammond coughed awkwardly into his fist and looked away from me, a slight blush on his cheeks.

"I haven't mastered it yet, and I've barely figured out how to activate it. It was pure luck that I was able to possess that guy at all" he admitted, obviously a little annoyed at his apparent lack of proficiency of his newfound powers. I leaned back on my haunches, thinking about what he just said.

It certainly explained a lot, though, since sending in a newly born Devil Fruit user into a dangerous situation was akin to playing with a live grenade. It could work in your favour, or blow up in your face. Well, definitely useful, and definitely not something I want to experience.

"Okay. Cool, then" I said at last, causing the young man to blink at me in surprise. I rolled my eyes at that. Did he really think I would be pissed off? My head may have unscrewed itself a little, but I can see the logic in it, and understand his reasons for not jumping in as soon as possible.

Before the conversation could progress further, the businessman stirred, and after a few seconds to become orientated, he became suitably panicked. But, again, before anything could be done, the sound of sirens and shouting reached our ears. We must have only been out for a short amount of time, if the firemen were only just arriving.

"Time to depart?" I asked cheerily, despite myself, and Jack grinned down at me.

"Time to depart" he agreed.

A good hour later we found ourselves back on the ship, supplies gathered through rather violent means, the business man appropriately taken care of and my head checked out and diagnosed with a minor concussion. No sleeping for a while and everyone was staying put for another day or so to recover before they went off sailing.

In the meantime, I split my time between hanging out with Jacks crew, recovering, and looking for the Mysterious Woman Who Knew of Death. It was surprisingly difficult. Or maybe not-so-surprising since I literally knew nothing about the woman besides the obvious, which, as it turns out, is not the best information in locating the woman. Which kind of sucks, since that's literally all I have on her.

I sighed as I walked down yet another street, my hands in my pockets once again. The sun was beginning to set and people were heading back home to avoid the chill of the desert nights. The sky was darkening and the world was bathed in long shadows and a golden-orange light that never failed to remind me of my old home from so long ago. I finally stopped from my aimless wandering, and half-turned to look at the setting sun. Another fruitless day, another day wasted looking for someone who might have the answers to my questions. With another sigh, I turned fully towards the sunset and started walking back towards the docks.

"How strange" I soft, gravelly voice said suddenly, like a whisper on the wind. Turning my head, I saw a hunched figure shrouded by a black cloak and long dark robes, her face hidden under her hood. I half-turned again so neither my front nor my back face her, and watched the woman shift slightly so I could see more of her face, but her eyes remained hidden. It was then I noticed we were the only ones out on the street, completely alone.

"Strange how?" I asked, knowing she was referring to me. The woman made a noncommittal hum before turning away and began to walk down the street, away from the docks. I hesitated for a moment, but began to follow the woman. I followed shortly behind her for several long minutes, through winding turns and dark corners and shadowed alleys before finally coming to an unnoticeable building.

I stopped at the threshold of the building, the door left open behind the woman as she entered. The room beyond the door was pitch black, no light pierced beyond the entrance, even with the setting sun casting a bright glow on everything it touched. But no light could touch this darkness, I suppose, since light had no place in the realm of death.

Looking up from where I was staring at the floor of the entrance, I glance towards the sunset, where the docks are, but taking a step through the threshold and following the woman.

Once I was clear of the door, it slammed shut. I spun around but couldn't see anything, and there wasn't any sign that there had ever been a door. With a deep, slow breath, I carefully turned and continued on through the house. The further I walked, the more pressure I felt, pushing on me from all directions. I found it harder and harder to breathe, and my head was heavy, I couldn't think straight.

Then suddenly, the weight was gone. I stumbled forward and landed on my knees, clutching my head with one hand as the fogginess disappeared. I shook my head, panting, wondering what the hell that was and why the hell I thought it had been a good idea to follow the woman. A light flickered to life in the corner of my vision, and I looked up to see a candle atop a small round table. The woman waiting patiently in one of the two chairs, a small box in her hands. With a long sigh, I stood and walked over to the table, wordlessly taking a seat.

The woman held one of her hands out expectantly. I gave her a strange, confused look, because really I had no clue what was going on, but I extended my hand nonetheless. I finally found the woman, there was no way I was just going to turn tail and run. Plus I had no idea how to get out.

There was a flash of silver and a sharp pain, I jerked my hand back in reaction and the woman relinquished her grip without a fight. In her other hand was a blade, the sharp edge glistening darkly in the candlelight. The dark cloaked woman opened the box, revealing was looked like a small pile of dirt, and flicked blood into the box.

Admittedly, I didn't really expect anything to happen, but after a few moments the drops of my blood began to glow amber and hardened, mixing with the soil to create a stone of a dark orange, once it stopped glowing. The tiny stones were translucent, with no impurities that I could see, and were perfectly smooth; standing out against the dark earth it rested on.

"How strange" I jumped at the woman's voice, my eyes jerked up to clash with her grey ones. They were staring at me with such… wisdom, such power, it was a little frightening. "How fascinating" she breathed, her eyes unwavering.

"What is?" I asked after a moment, suddenly very apprehensive about the answer.

"A warrior with the spirit of the lion, born from the soul of earth" she started, in a trance, "the two became one and became two once again, each holding a piece of the other. Many things shall change, many things shall come, for chaos seeks to take all who fight, and turn them against the light. Protect her. That is your duty. Protect the Key from falling into the wrong hands. Ensure the song is heard, and pierce the darkness" she whispered, low but clear. I stared at her for a long time, wondering if this woman has gone mad.

"What?" I said flatly, but the woman simply smiled and said something completely unhelpful.

"Earth has chosen you" Then I was flying away from the woman, the table and the darkness, like something was pulling me back.

I didn't realise I was staring up at the night sky until a small desert fox crept up and licked my cheek. I blinked and my body remembered to breathe. I turned my head to the tiny animal, who gave me an extra lick before sitting up and looking at me for several seconds. One of its ears flicked before it dashed off through the back alleys and vanished into the night. Slowly, I sat up and found myself lying in the middle of the road, the door to the strange woman's house several feet ahead of me. My brain sluggishly comprehended what had happened, which was that I had somehow been thrown from the building. I gripped my head as the words she spoke came flooding back, echoing in my head repeatedly, and refusing to leave me alone.

Whatever or whoever this 'key' was, I needed to find it. But the woman said 'her'. Does that mean this 'key' is a person? With a frustrated sigh, I buried my face in my hands, wondering just what the hell I had gotten myself into, and what the hell I was going to do now.

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**Good? Bad? Any mistakes to point out? Thank you for reading, and I hoped you guys loved it! **

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